THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


Canterbury  Bells. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS; 


OR, 


in  ify  IHnwnt 


'**0  lady !  leave  thy  silken  thread 

And  flowery  tapestrie : 
There's  living  roses  on  the  bush, 

And  blossoms  on  the  tree ; 
Stoop  where  thou  wilt,  thy  careless  hand 

Some  random  bud  will  meet ; 
Thou  canst  not  tread,  but  thou  wilt  find 

The  daisy  at  thy  feet." 


NEW-YORK: 

r>.  in. 

770  BROADWAY,  CORNER  OF  9TH  ST. 

1868. 


ENTERED,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  I860,  by 
ANSON  D.  F.  RANDOLPH, 

Q  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the 
Southern  District  of  New-York. 


JOHN  A.  GRAY 

PRINTER  &  STEREOTTPZR, 

16  and  IS  Jacob  St. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS  ; 


OB, 


in  t|e 


CHAPTER   I. 

IT  lias  been  perhaps  some  sixty  years, 
since,  on  an  afternoon  late  in  the  winter,  Mr. 
Ludwell  rode  up  the  long,  winding  road  lead- 
ing to  his  elegant  and  happy  country  home, 
Belmont ;  which  was  beautifully  situated  on 
the  north-western  bank  of  the  Potomac,  with 
the  Virginia  range  of  the  Blue  Eidge  Moun- 
tains on  one  side,  and  the  sharp  peak  of 
the  Sugar  Loaf  on  the  other.  When  he  had 
reached  the  marble  lion  which  stood  between 
two  stately  cedars,  and  was  intended  to  serve 
the  purpose  of  a  horse-rack,  he  dismounted, 
and  tossing  carelessly  the  reins  of  his  fine 

"*  567095 


6  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

blooded  steed  to  a  young  groom  in  livery, 
said: 

"  There  Milo !  see  her  well  rubbed  down 
before  she's  fed."  Then  turning,  with  an 
eager  hurried  step,  he  ascended  the  smooth 
green  terrace ;  but  paused  again,  as  he  ap- 
proached the  house,  and  looking  back,  gazed, 
with  something  of  sadness  in  his  face,  through 
the  long  avenue  of  elms  he  had  just  passed. 
In  a  few  moments  stealthy  footsteps  advan- 
ced towards  him,  and  he  was  aroused  from 
his  reverie,  by  the  pressure  of  two  little 
plump  white  arms,  in  fall  crimson  merino 
sleeves,  looped  at  the  shoulder,  which  clasp- 
ed him  tightly  round  the  neck,  while  a  merry 
laugh  rang  in  his  ear  and  a  sweet  familiar 
voice  exclaimed  triumphantly : 

"  Ah  !  papa,  /caught  you  this  time,  sir." 
"  And  so  you  did,  little  gipsy  —  close 
enough  prisoner  you've  made  of  me,  too," 
he  said,  laughing,  as  he  looked  down  proud- 
ly and  fondly  on  the  fair  young  face  uplift- 
ed towards  his  own ;  then  clasping  affection- 
ately the  little  maiden  in  his  arms,  he 
kissed  warmly  both  lips  and  forehead. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  7 

Clara  took  possession  first,  of  her  father's 
riding- whip,  and  then  of  the  hand  which  had 
held  it,  caressing  the  latter  again  and  again 
as  she  tripped  by  his  side  answering  and  ask- 
ing questions. 

"  What  were  you  thinking  of,  papa,  I  won- 
der, just  now,  when  I  took  you  so  nicely  by 
surprise?  I  saw  you  from  Aunt  Annie's 
window,  and  slipped  down,  without  saying  a 
single  word  to  any  body,  because  I  was  de- 
termined I  would  have  the  first  kiss." 

"  I  was  thinking,  daughter,  of  poor  sick 
mamma,  and  cousin  Alice.  Dr.  Thompson 
says  I  must  take  them  both  on  a  sea-voy- 
age, and  I  have  to  try  to  gain  mamma's  con- 
sent ;  yet  we  shall  both  be  very  sorry  to  leave 
our  precious  children  for  so  many  months." 

Clara  looked  grave,  instantly ;  but  as  they 
reached  the  front  portico  her  face  brightened 
again,  and  with  a  mischievous  smile  she 
said: 

"  0  papa !  I  have  such  a  good  plan  in 
my  head,  if  you'll  only  help  me  about  it ! 
Won't  you  just  pull  your  hat  over  your  fore- 
head, and  turn  up  your  cloak-collar,  so  that 


8  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

it  will  hide  your  face  a  little  ?  There,  that's 
it  exactly !  only  stoop  a  little  more.  Now,  J 
don't  think  they'll  know  you  at  first,  and  1 
want  to  give  mamma  and  the  children  a  good 
surprise,  for  they  don't  expect  you  at  all. 
You'll  have  to  stand  near  this  pillar  when 
Uncle  Simon  comes  to  the  door,  and  I'll  ring 
the  bell  for  him  after  I  get  in  the  hall 
myself." 

Mr.  Ludwell  smilingly  followed  all  her 
directions,  and  the  little  girl  noiselessly  open- 
ed the  front-door  and  closed  it  behind  her, 
then  pulled  the  bell- wire  until  it  gave  a  loud, 
long  ring,  which  echoed  through  the  house. 
Her  mother,  a  very  pale  and  delicate  lady, 
started  at  this  sound  from  her  reclining  pos- 
ture on  a  settee,  drawn  up  near  the  wide  fire- 
place with  its  roaring  wood-fire,  and  glanced 
around  the  room  with  a  look  of  nervous 
timidity ;  while  the  children,  who  had  been 
busily  at  play,  were  no  less  suddenly  hushed 
and  began  to  gather  close  about  her.  Clara 
entered  almost  at  the  same  moment,  and, 
with  a  look  of  mock  surprise  and  wonder, 
whispered : 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  9 

"  Mamma,  there's  a  gentleman  at  the  door, 
and  I'm  sure  he's  asking  for  you.  Yet  there's 
no  horse  at  the  rack  —  where  could  he  have 
come  from?"  As  she  finished  speaking,  a 
keen  observer  might  have  noticed  the  smile 
she  was  trying  to  suppress,  and  guessed  that 
some  roguish  trick  was  about  to  be  played 
off ;  but  her  mother  did  not,  and  was  already 
becoming  quite  agitated  as  the  steps  of  the 
supposed  stranger  were  heard  approaching  the 
dining-room  door.  The  arrival  of  a  visitor 
at  Belmont  during  the  winter  months  was 
a  rare  occurrence,  and  the  good  lady  felt  very 
diffident  of  her  powers  of  entertaining  a  gen- 
tleman guest  in  the  absence  of  her  husband, 
and  in  her  very  feeble  health.  In  addition  to 
this,  her  mind  had  seized  upon  the  hint  which 
Clara  had  thrown  out  respecting  his  mysterious 
advent.  She,  however,  assumed  as  much  as 
possible  her  usual  dignity  and  composure  of 
manner,  and  rose  as  Uncle  Simon,  opening 
very  wide  the  door  of  the  apartment,  made 
one  of  his  profound  bows  and  announced  : 

"  Capt.  Peters  !  Madam." 

No  sooner,  however,  was  the  hat  raised 


10  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

from  the  visitor's  head,  than  loud  exclama- 
tions of  joyful  surprise  were  heard  on  all 
sides;  and  Uncle  Simon  stretched  his  eyes 
and  gave  a  very  broad  grin,  as  Mr.  Ludwell, 
throwing  him  his  cloak,  rushed  by  him  in 
eager  haste  to  reach  his  lady's  side.  "  Ex- 
cuse me,  my  darling" — he  said  bending  over 
her  fragile  form  and  holding  tenderly  the 
white,  cold  hands  which  trembled  in  his. 
"  This  was  all  Clara's  trick,  but  I  ought  to 
have  been  more  thoughtful  and  remembered 
how  easily  your  poor  nerves  are  shocked 
now  that  you  are  so  sick.  0  daughter ! 
you  see  we've  done  wrong,"  he  added,  look- 
ing gravely  at  poor  Clara,  upon  whose  lips 
the  bright  smile  had  faded  as  soon  as  she 
saw  how  much  her  mother  suffered,  and  the 
effort  she  was  obliged  to  make  to  control  her 
hysterical  excitement. 

"  I  am  so  sorry  1"  said  the  little  girl  softly, 
and  stooping  down  beside  her  mother,  she 
commenced  bathing  her  temples  with  co- 
logne, stopping  every  now  and  then  to 
imprint  a  tender  and  penitent  kiss. 

"Never  mind,  my  dear,"  said  Mrs.  Lud- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  11 

well,  as  soon  as  she  could  speak;  "it's  over 
now.  I  am  sure  you  did  not  mean  to  distress 
me,  but  I'm  such  a  poor  foolish  creature  at 
present  that  you'll  have  to  be  more  careful 
another  time.  However,  it  is  such  a  very 
pleasant  surprise  to  have  dear  papa  back  so 
much  sooner  than  we  expected,  that  it's  not 
strange  you  forgot  yourself.  But  how  does 
it  happen,  Mr.  Ludwell  ?  Your  last  letter 
led  me  to  suppose  you  would  certainly  not 
get  off  in  less  than  a  week,  so  it  is  really  no 
wonder  that  your  sudden  appearance  should 
have  startled  me." 

"  I  am  sure  I  am  almost  as  much  surprised 
myself,  and  quite  overjoyed  too;  for  it  was 
hard  to  be  away  so  long  and  leave  you  sick 
at  home.  An  important  witness  in  the  case 
died,  however,  poor  fellow!  very  suddenly 
day  before  yesterday,  and  the  other  side 
called  for  a  postponement,  in  order  to  collect 
fresh  evidence.  I  should  have  been  here  last 
night,  but  remained  another  day  to  see  the 
doctor  again  about  you  and  Allie.  It  only 
remains  now  for  us  to  make  some  provision 
for  these  well  members  of  the  family,  and 


12  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

then  you  invaliis  are  to  be  carried  off  nolens 
vokns.  Clara  tells  me  that  my  poor  dear 
little  Alice  has  been  suffering  more  than 
usual  during  the  last  few  days." 

"  Yes  but  her  mother  thinks  she's  better 
again  to-day.  Annie  is  very  anxious,  how- 
ever, about  her,  and  has  scarcely  left  her  an 
hour  at  a  time  for  the  last  two  weeks." 

"  Bun  up,  Clara,  my  darling,  and  tell  your 
aunt  that  I  am  here,  and  will  come  up  to  see 
her  as  soon  as  she  is  ready  to  admit  me — and 
do  bring  little  Annie  and  Tommy  down ; 
those  poor  children,  at  least,  should  not  stay 
so  much  in  that  sick-room,"  said  Mr.  Ludwell. 

"  Why,  what's  this  young  rogue  after  with 
his  hands  in  my  pocket  ?"  he  continued  catch- 
ing hold  of  Charlie,  who  had  been  busily 
engaged  for  some  moments  ransacking  his 
father's  coat-pockets.  "You  are  a  perfect 
little  pick-pocket,  sir.  Here !  give  me  back 
all  those  packages  you've  rifled  me  of,  and  if 
you  wish  to  see  what's  for  you,  go  tell  Jack* 
son  to  bring  in  my  portmanteau." 

"  I'll  bring  it  myself,  in  a  trice !"  said 
George,  running  after  Charlie. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  13 

"And  I'll  help,"  said  Henry,  following 
more  slowly. 

"When  Clara  had  returned,  bringing  Annie 
and  Tommy  with  her,  the  children  gathered 
eagerly  around  the  portmanteau  ;  which  Mr. 
Ludwell  opened  with  affected  precision,  and 
Charlie  watched  him,  as  he  slowly  removed 
his  own  clothing,  scarcely  able  to  restrain  his 
impatience  for  the  expected  signal  for  a 
general  ransack.  But  just  at  this  moment 
the  heavy  front-door  creaked  again  on  its 
hinges,  and  steps  were  heard  in  the  hall. 

"  I  do  believe  some  body  is  coming,  sure 
enough  I"  said  George.  "  It's  too  bad  1  who 
can  be  going  to  interrupt  us,  I  wonder?" 

"  Oh  1  fie  for  shame,  Greorgie !"  said  Clara, 
springing  up.  "  Of  course  it  can  be  no  body 
but  dear  grandpa."  A  venerable  old  gentle- 
man now  entered,  whom  they  all  affectionate- 
ly saluted  as  "grandpa,"  seeming  delighted 
to  see  him  too. 

"  It  never  rains  but  that  it  pours !"  said 
Henry.  "  "We  are  especially  glad  to  see  you, 
sir  for  papa's  just  come,  and  you  see  we  are 
3 


14  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

searching  his  portmanteau  to  find  what  he 
has  brought  us  from  Washington." 

"  "Well,  my  boy,  I  wish  you  a  successful 
search,"  said  the  old  gentleman  kindly. 

"  But,  Edward,  how  did  you  get  off  from 
your  business  in  Washington  ?  The  case  is 
not  ended  surely  ?" 

"No;  only  interrupted  by  the  death  of 
poor  Sawkins,  the  principal  witness  on  the 
other  side." 

"  Now,  dear  grandpa,"  said  little  Susy, 
"  you  must  have  your  cocoa,  and  Pll  make 
it,  mayn't  I?  And  then,  while  you  smoke 
your  pipe  there  by  mamma,  we'll  go  on  un- 
packing papa's  things." 

"Why,  you  thoughtful  little  woman  of — 
let  me  see,  how  many  years,  five  or  six?'1*  . 

"Why,  grandpa!  you  know  that  Char- 
lie and  Emmy  are  six  !  I'm  eight  years  old 
and  a  little  more,"  Answered  Susy  almost  in- 
dignantly. 

"  Eighty  !  did  you  say,  my  dear  ?  I  have 
made  a  grand  mistake,  then,  and  beg  your 
pardon  for  having  considered  you  among  the 
children.  Why,  you  are  old  enough  to  be 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  15 

Charlie's  great-grandmother  instead  of  his 
playmate." 

"0  grandpa!  you're  so  fond  of  teas- 
ing me.  I  didn't  say  eighty,  I  said  eight, 
sir — but  you  won't  tell  me,  if  you'll  have  the 
cocoa." 

Grandpa  reached  out  his  arm  and  caught 
the  kind-hearted  little  creature  whom  he  held 
for  a  moment  or  two  between  his  knees, 
stroking  her  head,  and  calling  her  "poor 
old  woman,"  whilst  the  others  laughed 
heartily. 

"  Do  make  her  tell  how  much  more  than 
eight  she  is,  grandpa,"  said  Henry,  who 
prided  himself  011  being  eleven. 

"One  week,  two  days,  five  hours,  and  ten 
minutes,  I  guess,"  said  grandpa. 

"You've  most  said  it  right,  hasn't  he, 
Susy?  Just  one  day  more,  and,  I  expect, 
half  an  hour  and  a  quarter  of  a  minute,  and 
it  would  be  exactly  right,"  said  Henry. 

Susy  only  blushed,  and  hung  her  head. 

""Well,  you  are  a  nice,  kind  old  soul  at 
least,  my  dear,  and  I'll  be  much  obliged  if 
you'll  get  my  tobacco-pouch  out  of  my  sur- 


16  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

tout-pocket,  and  tell  Peter  to  fill  my  pipe 
and  bring  it  in.  The  cocoa  we'll  put  off  for 
the  present,  and  go  immediately  into  that 
important  investigation  of  a  certain  port- 
manteau, which  has  been  waiting  so  long." 
As  the  old  gentleman  released  Susy,  he  gave 
her  a  warm  kiss,  and  stroked  her  smooth  rosy 
cheek,  saying,  as  she  left  the  room  : 

"I'll  tell  you  what,  there  are  not  many 
little  Grandmother  Susies  in  this  cold,  hard 
world." 

"  Here,  grandpa,  you  shall  have  all  these 
mean  red-tape  bundles  to  keep,"  said  George 
presently.  "You  see,  sir,  papa  has  been 
cheating  us  dreadfully,  making  us  choose 
which  hand  we'll  take,  when  all  the  time  he 
has  nothing  in  either,  except  Somebody  or 
other  vs.  Somebody  else.  ISTow  I  want  to  put 
all  law  stuff  out  of  the  way." 

"Very  well,  Georgie,  I'll  help  you.  But 
what  has  that  little  rogue,  Tommy  Lee,  got 
hold  of  to  delight  his  sober  little  soul  so 
much?" 

"  0  grandpa !  it's  a  soldier,  this  like  my  dear 
father  used  to  be !  Does  you  wemember  when 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  1 1 

he  was  a  soldier,  and  had  a  sword  like  this 
one  ?  It's  np-stairs  now  in  mother's  closet, 
with  his  tane  and  umbwella,  and  all  those 
things,  that'll  be  mine  one  of  those  days, 
when  I'm  a  bid  man  and  a  soldier  of  the 
twoss.  Thafs  what  my  mother  says  I  must 
be ;  for  my  dear  papa  was  that  before  he  died." 

"  He  was  a  brave  man,  my  son,  and  died 
in  his  country's  service,"  replied  the  old  gen- 
tleman sadly. 

"He  did  something  tesides  too,  grandpa. 
I  think  he  was  two  tinds  of  a  soldier.  Don't 
you  know  he  loved  Jesus  and  went  to  heaven 
when  he  died  ?" 

"  That's  where  all  brave,  honest  men  go, 
my  child." 

"  Does  bwave  mean  that  they  loves  God, 
sir?" 

"  Not  exactly." 

"  Oh !  then ;  but  they  must  do  that  too, 
sir !"  said  Tommy,  shaking  his  head  solemnly. 
"Indeed  they  must ;  for  mother  says  our  hea- 
venly Father  will  not  take  any  body  to  live 
with  him  that  doesn't  love  him." 

"  Your  mother  is  going  to  make  a  Puritan 
2* 


18  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

preacher  of  you,  poor  child,  I'm  afraid  1"  said 
his  grandfather,  rising  with  a  look  of  some- 
thing like  displeasure  in  his  face  as  he  walk- 
ed to  the  window,  where  he  stood  for  some 
moments  looking  out  upon  the  surrounding 
landscape. 

"  Clara !  try  this  dressy  little  cap  upon 
mamma,  and  let  us  see  if  it  does  not  become 
her  pale  face.  I  bought  it  of  a  little  French 
milliner,  who  was  sure  *  if  de  lady  was  sick, 
she  would  just  become  dis  cap  exactly.'  Yes, 
I  believe  she  was  right,  mamma  sets  off  the 
pretty  cap.  Now,  daughter,  here  is  a  brooch 
for  yourself;  how  does  it  suit?  Amethyst 
and  pearl." 

"  Oh !  it's  perfectly  lovely,  papa.  I'm  so 
much  obliged  to  you,  for  it's  just  what  I  want- 
ed. See,  mamma!  isn't  it  a  beauty?  But 
here's  another  just  like  it  in  the  same  box. 
Ah!  I  know  that's  for  Annie.  Isn't  it,  sir?" 

"  Yes ;  I  thought  you  would  like  to  have 
them  alike,  as  you  are  to  be  sisters  now." 

"So  we  would,  wouldn't  we,  Annie  ? 
Here,  let  me  put  yours  in  your  collar,  to 
see  how  pretty  it  looks  !" 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  19 

"  Thank  you,  dear  uncle ;  you  are  so  kind 
to  us  always !"  said  Annie,  putting  up  her 
mouth  for  a  kiss.  Her  uncle  patted  her  cheek 
and  kissed  her,  saying:  "You  are  a  sweet, 
proper  little  girl ;  and  now  you  may  go  with 
me  to  see  your  mother  and  my  poor  little 
Allie." 

"  Sister  Allie  was  going  to  play  on  her 
dwitar,"  said  Tommy. 

"  Here,  Annie.  You  shall  take  her  present 
up;  it  has  probably  just  come  in  time,"  said 
Mr.  Ludwell,  putting  into  her  hand  a  small 
parcel  wrapped  in  soft  blotting-paper. 

"  What  is  it  ?"  asked  Clara  eagerly,  laying 
her  hand  on  her  cousin's  arm.  "  Papa,  I'm 
going  to  peep  in.  Oh !  a  beautiful  musical- 
box,  all  inlaid  with  mother-of-pearl.  How 
exquisite  it  is  I  Alice  will  be  perfectly  charm- 
ed, I  am  sure." 

"  Yes,  indeed  she  will ;  for  she  is  so  devot- 
ed to  music,"  said  Annie.  "Dear  uncle,  you 
couldn't  have  chosen  better  if  you'd  looked 
the  whole  world  over,  and  I  am  so  much 
obliged  for  us  both,"  she  added,  her  eyes  fill- 
ing with  grateful  tears  as  she  spoke. 


20  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

The  children  gathered  round  to  express 
their  admiration,  and  beg  for  just  one  tuno 
before  it  was  carried  up-stairs. 

"  No,  no ;  Alice  must  hear  it  first,"  answer- 
ed their  father ;  "  and  she  will  let  it  play  for 
you  sometimes,  when  you  go  up  to  see  her." 

Grandpa  said  he  must  be  present  when 
she  received  it ;  so  Annie  got  his  cane  and 
led  the  way  through  the  long  corridor  and  up 
the  staircase,  leading  to  her  mother's  chamber, 
which  was  in  a  wing  of  the  house,  and  imme- 
diately over  what  the  servants  called  "  The 
Haunted  Parlor."  Mrs.  Lee  had  for  some 
reason  selected  this  apartment  for  herself;  but 
to  Mr.  Ludwell,  the  associations  were  so  sad 
with  this  part  of  his  house,  that  until  his 
widowed  sister  came  with  her  sick  child  to 
occupy  it,  he  had  not  entered  it  for  many 
years.  And  now,  he  heaved  a  deep  sigh,  as 
Annie,  after  first  tapping  gently,  opened  the 
door.  Yet  every  thing  looked  bright  and 
cheerful  in  there.  The  walls  were  painted 
blue,  and  from  its  many  windows  hung  cur- 
tains of  blue  chintz,  with  small  crimson 
figures  and  white  muslin  ones  beneath.  There 


THE   CANTEKBUKY  BELLS.  21 

was  a  rich  Turkey  carpet  of  corresponding 
colors  on  the  floor.  Upon  the  high-carved 
mantle-piece  were  arranged  several  antique 
ornaments ;  the  portrait  of  a  handsome  officer 
in  uniform  hung  just  over  these.  A  screen 
drawn  across  one  side  of  the  room,  did  not 
entirely  conceal  the  high-carved  bedstead  with 
its  snowy  counterpane  and  valance;  before 
the  blazing  hickory  fire  was  standing  a  vacant 
rocking-chair,  and  near  this  a  round  table, 
with  a  rich  cloth  cover,  containing  books, 
a  writing-desk,  and  an  unfinished  drawing, 
which  Annie  had  just  left.  In  the  recess  of 
a  bow- window,  not  far  from  the  fire,  there  was 
a  lounge,  on  which  was  reclining  a  lovely  girl 
of  some  fifteen  or  sixteen  summers.  She  was 
supported  by  several  pillows,  and  leaning 
with  her  face  turned  towards  the  window, 
resting  thoughtfully  upon  one  hand.  In  the  • 
other  she  held  a  small  book  with  one  of  her 
slender  white  fingers  inserted  between  its 
leaves.  The  light  of  the  setting  sun  came 
streaming  in  upon  the  locks  of  golden  hair 
which  hung  about  her  face  and  neck,  and 
kicdled  a  soft  glow  on  her  pale  cheeks ; 


22  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

while  in  her  countenance  shone  a  spiritual 
radiance  which  rivalled  even  this.  There  had 
been  perfect  stillness  in  the  room  for  several 
minutes,  and  Mrs.  Lee  sat  watching  hei 
daughter's  face  with  deep  emotion,  having 
suffered  her  knitting  to  fall  quietly  in  her 
lap.  As  soon,  however,  as  Annie  knocked, 
she  rose  and  stepped  forward  to  meet  her 
father-in-law  and  brother.  But  Alice  was  so 
occupied  with  her  own  thoughts,  that  she  was 
not  conscious  of  their  entrance,  until  Annie 
had  touched  her  and  said : 

"  Sister,  grandpa  and  uncle  have  come  up 
to  see  you,  and  you  don't  take  any  notice  of 
them."  Then  she  turned  upon  them  a  bright, 
beaming  smile,  and  said  playfully : 

"  That's  only  because  they  caught  me 
dreaming  ;  but  dear  grandpa  and  uncle  kno\v 
that  I  am  always  charmed  to  see  them.  Such 
a  pleasant  surprise  too  it  is  this  evening !  So 
you  are  both  doubly  welcome,"  she  added, 
bending  her  slender,  graceful  throat  to  salute 
them. 

"  The  rocking-chair  is  all  ready  for  you, 
grandpa,  so  let  me  lay  your  cane  here  by  my 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  23 

guitar,  while  you  rest  after  your  long  journey 
to  our  room." 

After  silently  smoothing  the  locks  on  her 
temple,  and  watching  her  for  a  few  moments 
with  a  look  of  the  tenderest  affection,  the  old 
gentleman  began  with  forced  gayety  to  rally 
her  upon  the  sober  expression  of  her  counte- 
nance when  he  entered. 

"What  in  the  world  is  this  you've  been 
reading,  my  child  ?  why,  it  made  you  look  as 
thoughtful  as  if  you  were  trying  to  penetrate 
the  mysteries  of  the  worlds  beyond  our  own 
— studying  Astronomy,  I  suppose,"  he  said, 
taking  as  he  spoke  the  book  from  her  hand. 
r<  German !  An  old  musty  German  book,  I 
declare !  No  wonder  you  were  puzzled.  Ah ! 
yes,  I  understand  it  all  now." 

Alice  laughed  a  little,  and  then  said  seri- 
ously :  "  If  you  really  wish  me  to,  I  will  tell 
you,  grandpa,  what  I  was  thinking  of." 

"  Certainly  I  do,  my  dear ;  but  in  Eng- 
lish, if  you  please  1" 

"  Mamma  has  been  reading  to  me  this  even- 
ing, in  this  old  book  of  Tauler's;  and  one 
sweet  but  very  simple  thought  of  his  seemed 


24:  THE   CANTERBUKY  BELLS. 

to  fasten  itself  upon  my  mind,  and  set  my 
.heart  to  longing  for  some  of  those  good  things 
which  are  to  come  by  and  by.  He  says  : 
1  To  a  man  who  looks  long  at  the  sun,  the 
sun  imprints  itself  on  every  thing  he  sees  ;  so 
is  it  with  a  man  who  looks  much  at  God.' 
Now,  while  I  was  looking  out  here  where 
the  sunlight  is  making  every  thing  so  beau- 
tiful, I  began  to  think  how  blessed  it  would 
be  if  we  could  keep  looking  up  so  steadily  to 
the  Sun  of  Eighteousness  as  to  have  our 
hearts  filled  with  the  rays  of  his  spiritual 
sunshine,  and  be  constantly  reflecting  them  to 
others.  How  bright  our  own  pathway  home 
would  be,  and  how  many  would  be  enticed 
to  join  us  on  the  way  !  But  it  made  me  sad 
when  I  began  to  remember  how  the  shadows 
will  keep  creeping  up  between  us  and  our  sun, 
until  I  thought  again  of  by  and  ~by,  when  God 
will  be  our  light  all  the  time  ;  when  the  glory 
of  his  visible  presence  will  be  continually 
shining  before  our  eyes.  I  may  have  looked 
grave,  but  I  was  very,  very  happy  as  I  thought 
of  these  things.  Perhaps  we  don't  always 
chow  it  when  we  are  most  happy ;  for  I  almost 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  25 

realized,  I  do  believe,  just  now,  the  joy  of 
being  in  heaven.  However,  it  is  too  soon 
yet,  and  it  was  only  a  dream.  So,  as  I  had 
to  come  back  to  this  world  again,  it  is  very 
sweet  to  do  so  in  the  midst  of  kind  and  loving 
friends." 

As  she  spoke  she  looked  up  as  if  for 
sympathy,  with  one  of  her  peculiarly  win- 
ning smiles,  to  the  faces  of  those  who  were 
near  her,  but  none  seemed  able  to  meet  her 
eye.  They  turned  sadly  away,  and  there  was 
a  pause,  until  Annie,  unfolding  her  little 
parcel,  displayed  the  musical-box,  saying : 

"  Look,  sister,  what  uncle  has  brought  you. 
Now  you  won't  care  so  much  about  your 
guitar '  until  you  are  stronger.  See !  it's  all 
inlaid  with  mother-of-pearl.  Clara  and  I 
think  it's  a  beauty/" 

Alice  took  it  in  her  hand,  and  held  it  up 
with  a  look  of  delight. 

"  Now,  uncle,  you  must  tell  me  how  I  can 
show  you  how  grateful  I  feel ;  for  you  so 
often  make  me  say,  '  Thank  you,  sir,'  that 
I  am  afraid  you  are  tired  of  hearing  it," 
she  said,  smiling  archly;  then  added  more 
3 


26  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

seriously :  "  But  I  am  most  deeply  grateful 
for  your  kindness,  and  love  to  remember  who 
has  promised  to  reward  those  who  are  kind 
to  the  widow  and  the  fatherless." 

Annie  now  wound  up  the  little  box  and 
placed  it  on  a  small  stand  by  her  sister's 
couch,  which  held  her  Bible,  Prayer-Book, 
a  copy  of  the  Olney  Hymns,  a  glass  of  exqui- 
site flowers,  and,  concealed  by  a  snowy  napkin, 
the  vial  and  little  china  cup  for  her  medicine. 
While  it  played,  Alice  leaned  forward  to  catch 
its  soft  notes  with  a  look  of  keen  enjoyment, 
then  turning  to  her  uncle,  she  said  : 

"  My  heart  will  always  sing  a  grateful 
accompaniment,  dear  uncle,  and  sometimes 
when  I  feel  one  of  my  long  coughs  coming  on, 
I  shall  wind  it  up  for  dear  mother's  benefit ; 
for  I  think  she  must  get  sadly  wearied  out 
with  such  ugly  music." 


CHAPTEE    II. 

IT  had  been  arranged  that  a  grand  family- 
council  should  be  held  the  next  evening,  to 
determine  what  measures  were  to  be  taken 
for  the  care  and  protection  of  the  children, 
during  their  parents'  absence  from  home; 
Their  happiness  being  so  much  concerned  in 
the  question — those  of  them  who  were  old 
enough  to  understand  the  proceeding,  were 
promised  that  they  should  be  present,  and 
help  the  decision  with  their  votes.  As  Mrs. 
Ludwell's  indisposition  confined  her  very 
much  t'o  her  couch,  which  stood  beside  the 
great  wide  fire-place  in  the  dining-room,  this 
had  become  the  usual  place  of  general  family 
resort.  It  was  a  large,  cozy,  comfortable,  old- 
fashioned  room,  with  a  heavy  cornice  round 
the  ceiling,  and  a  centre-piece  of  rich  mould- 
ing ;  the  walls  were  painted  green,  with  white 
chair  and  wash-boardings.  There  were  four 
windows,  from  which  hung  curtains  of  green 


28  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

and  gold.  The  two  in  front  were  double, 
and  commanded  a  beautiful  view  of  the  dis- 
tant river,  with  the  broad  meadows  spread 
out  before  it,  and  still  further  off,  the  moun- 
tain tops  which  bounded  the  horizon ;  while 
the  remaining  two  at  the  side  of  the  room 
opened  up  from  the  floor  and  led  into  the 
conservatory,  where  there  was  a  choice  col- 
lection of  rare  and  beautiful  exotics. 

The  mantle-piece,  according  to  the  fashion 
of  the  day,  was  very  high,  painted  black 
and  elaborately  carved ;  on  it  stood  a  pair  of 
tall  silver  candelabras,  filled  with  candles 
of  different  colored  wax,  a  pair  of  vases  of 
exquisite  china,  some  mineralogical  speci- 
mens, and  two  miniature  representations,  in 
variegated  marble,  of  the  pyramids,  or  obe- 
lisks. Just  over  these  curiosities  was  sus- 
pended an  heirloom  of  great  value ;  one  of 
the  Henries,  said  to  be  painted  by  Yan  Dyck. 
The  features  were  singularly  life-like  in  their 
expression,  and  the  dress,  of  course,  looked 
antique  and  fantastic  enough.  The  .servants 
were  firmly  fixed  in  their  conviction,  that  it 
could  talk,  and  that  it  had  more  than  once 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  29 

quitted  its  old  black  frame,  and  walked  to 
the  side-board  to  regale  itself  with  the  con- 
tents of  the  punch-bowl — scarcely  a  servant 
or  child  would,  if  they  could  help  it,  stay 
alone  in  the  room  with  the  "scarey  old  thing" 
even  in  broad  daylight.  Besides  this, 
there  was  hung  around  the  walls,  a  double 
row  of  family  portraits,  and,  conspicuously 
placed  in  the  midst  of  them,  a  large  and 
handsomely  framed  copy  of  the  "Declaration 
of  Independence." 

Next  in  importance  came  the  great  old 
mahogany  side-board,  with  its  high  carved 
and  pointed  back.  On  this,  in  regular  and 
methodical  order,  were  placed  first,  a  pair  of 
handsome  japanned  knife-and-fork  cases  on 
each  side ;  and  between  them  a  massive  sil- 
ver water-pitcher,  perfectly  plain,  except  on 
the  side,  where  a  little  chased  wreath  en- 
circled the  family  initials,  with  the  crest  and 
motto.  In  front  of  this  was  a  small  oval 
silver  waiter,  filled  with  goblets  of  cut  glass ; 
then  came  the  famous  punch-bowl,  of  richly 
colored  India  china,  set  in  a  wrought  silver 
frame,  holding  also  small  cups  cf  the  same 


30  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

metal,  lined  with.  gold.  Another  corner  was 
occupied  by  a  pair  of  decanters  with  some 
wine-glasses.  And  then,  with  the  large  sil- 
ver tea  and  coffee-urns,  the  appointments  of 
the  side-board  were  complete. 

An  antique  secretary  stood  in  a  corner  of 
the  room,  and  opposite  to  it  the  old  parlor 
organ,  with  a  high,  round  music-stool,  cov 
ered  with  red  leather,  and  thickly  studded 
round  with  brass-headed  nails. 

The  chairs  had  tall,  straight  backs,  and 
wide,  square  seats  covered  with  green  cloth  ; 
two  of  larger  dimensions  than  the  rest  were 
furnished  with  arms,  surmounted  with  curi- 
ously wrought  ebony  knobs,  and  were  placed 
on  each,  side  of  the  fire-place  for  grandpa 
and  papa  when  they  felt  inclined  to  occupy 
them.  Before  grandpa's  stood  a  wide  screen 
of  gay-colored  tapestry  in  a  mahogany  frame, 
inlaid  with  ebony  and  satin-wood. 

On  the  evening  of  the  grand  discussion, 
which  was  to  take  place  immediately  after 
tea,  the  bright  round  table  was  drawn  at 
early  candle-light,  into  the  middle  of  the 
floor.  It  had  no  cloth,  but  its  polished  sur- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  31 

face  reflected  back  like  a  mirror  its  comforta- 
ble arrangements  for  'tea.  A  vase  of  fresh 
flowers  occupied  the  centre,  with  silver  can- 
dle-sticks, holding  candles  of  colored  wax  on 
each  side.  The  tea-waiter  glittered  with  its 
beautifully  kept  utensils ;  the  coffee-urn  sent 
forth  its  aromatic  steam,  and  the  wrought- 
silver  kettle  hissed  over  the  soap-stone  heater. 

Clara,  with  her  hand  resting  upon  its  han- 
dle, had  made  more  than  one  smiling  gesture 
of  impatience  at  being  detained  from  perform- 
ing the  duties  of  her  deputed  office  at  the 
head  of  the  table,  of  which  she  was  not  a 
little  proud,  by  the  political  discussion  which 
engrossed  her  father  and  grandfather,  making 
them  entirely  disregardful  of  their  summons 
to  the  tea-table. 

Uncle  Simon,  in  his  grave  livery  and  de- 
mure countenance,  was  duly  posted  at  the 
back  of  her  chair,  ready  also  at  a  moment's 
warning,  to  begin  his  official  duties:  while 
Jackson  stood  at  the  lower  end,  evidently  on 
the  qui  vive  to  place  the  little  blue  India 
china  plates  which  were  in  the  plate- warmer 
at  the  fire.  And  "Mammy"  awaited,  with 


82  THE  CANTEKBURY  BELLS. 

baby  Phebe  in  her  arms  and  the  child's  well- 
filled  plate  and  silver  mug  in  her  hand,  an 
opportunity  for  the  little  lady  to  bid  good 
night !  and  retire  gloriously  from  the  field. 

Little  black  Dinah  was  seated  on  a  low 
stool  against  the  wall,  knitting  with  steady 
and  careful  precision,  in  spite  of  the  sly  and 
waggish  Charlie  who  was  playing  all  manner 
of  mischievous  tricks  on  her,  snapping  her 
yarn,  throwing  his  kitten  in  her  face,  or  try- 
ing to  jerk  the  long  stocking  from  her  fin- 
gers, only  eliciting,  however,  a  grummer  look 
with  a  toss  of  the  head,  and  the  occasional 
threatening  exclamation  :  "  Mas'  Charlie,  bet- 
ter be  done  dat  now  !  I  tell  missus,  mun !" 

Mrs.  Lee's  entrance  into  the  room  presently 
put  an  end  to  the  suspense  of  all  who  were 
anxious  for  the  evening  meal  to  begin ;  for, 
recognizing  the  claim  which  her  past  sorrow 
and  that  which  now  threatened  her  afresh, 
gave  her  to  their  peculiar  tenderness  and  re- 
spect, both  gentlemen  instantly  ceased  their 
spirited  dialogue,  and  moved  back  to  make 
room  for  her  at  the  fire. 


THE    CANTERBURY  BELLS.  33 

"We  are  always  glad  to  welcome  you 
down-stairs,  my  dear  I"  said  General  Lee. 

"  Yes,"  said  Mr.  Ludwell,  with  affectionate 
playfulness  ;  "for  she  is  determined  we  shall 
find  that  her  moments  in  our  society  are  like 
angel's  visits  in  more  than  one  sense." 

"  Oh  !  I  hope  you  have  not  waited  tea  for 
me!"  she  answered  glancing  at  the  vacant 
table.  "I  was  detained  unavoidably;  but 
sent  to  beg  you  would  not  wait,  and  expected 
to  take  mine  quite  alone  by  this  time." 

"  No,"  said  Mrs.  Ludwell,  smiling.  "  You 
are  indebted  to  father  and  Mr.  Ludwell  for 
your  disappointment.  They  have  been  so 
much  .engaged  with  their  Federalism,  that  it 
was  impossible  to  make  them  aware  of  the 
facts,  that  we  were  waiting,  and  the  bread  was 
spoiling ;  but  we  shall  certainly  all  sit  down 
with  more  zest  for  having  you  with  us." 

"  Well,  well ;  we  won't  deserve  your  scold 
ing  any  longer,  my  love,"  said  Mr.  Ludwell, 
leading  his  sister  to  her  seat  at  Clara's  right 
hand. 

As  soon  as  grandpa  had  taken  his  place, 
the  children  all  followed  his  example,  and 


84  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

with  graceful  vivacity  tlie  merry  jest  aiia 
lively  chat  were  soon  passing  round  the  hap- 
py circle,  only  one  heart  pausing  to  acknow- 
ledge from  whose  bountiful  goodness  so  many 
blessings  had  proceeded. 

"  Where  is  Tommy  to-night,  Aunt  ?"  asked 
the  thoughtful  little  Susy,  as  Mrs.  Lee  raised 
her  head,  after  her  silent  thanksgiving. 

"I  left  him  singing  hymns  to  his  sister 
Alice,  and  telling  her  stories  ;  very  much  en- 
chanted with  the  notion  of  entertaining  her 
during  our  absence." 

"  Dear  little  fellow !  It  would  be  hard  to 
find  a  sweeter  companion,  I  think,"  said  Mrs. 
Ludwell. 

.  "  Yery  clever  little  boy,  certainly ;"  said 
General  Lee ;  "  but  Annie,  I  am  afraid  you 
are  putting  too  much  cant  into  the  child's 
mouth.  Don't,  m  I  beseech  you,  overdo  the 
matter  of  his  religious  education,  which  you 
think  of  such  vast  importance." 

"  I  shall  certainly  try  not  to  overdo  it,  sir, 
though  I  am  not  sure  that  we  should  agree 
as  to  the  amount  required  first,"  said  Mrs. 
Lee  with  a  sweet  yet  serious  smile. 


THE  CANTEEBUEY  BELLS.  35 

"  Why,  I  would  have  a  child  brought  up 
to  reverence  his  Maker,  of  course ;  to  be 
obedient  and  dutiful  to  his  parents  ;  and  with, 
the  highest  standard  of  truth  and  integrity 
in  his  dealings  with  the  world  at  large.  But 
to  have  his  memory  burdened  with  texts  of 
Scripture  which  he  doesn't  understand,  and 
verses  of  rhyme  which  have  precious  little 
poetry  in  them — are,  in  short,  mere  vehicles 
for  insipid  moralizing  or  frightful  denuncia- 
tion— is,  in  my  opinion,  little  calculated  to 
strengthen  his  mental  faculties  or  fit  him  for 
the  actual  duties  of  life.  I  tell  you  what, 
Master  Tommy  would  have  done  you  credit 
in  the  days  of  Cromwell ;  but  times  are 
changed  much  for  the  better  now,  and  men 
feel  that  they  were  intended  for  something 
more  practical  than  whining  and  canting 
iway  their  lives." 

"  I  don't  think  this  is  exactly  the  place  or 
lime  for  a  discussion  of  this  question,  father ; 
but  I  must  say  that  I  think  you  do  not  treat 
the  matter  with  your  usual  justice." 

"  I  hope  I  have  not  said  any  thing  rude, 
my  dear  Annie,  for  certainly,  as  far  as  you 


36  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

and  some  others  are  concerned,  religion  seems 
fair  enough,  only  you  cheat  yourselves  of 
much  enjoyment  in  this  life  by  over-strict 
notions  of  duty,  which  seems  a  great  pity. 
Still,  when  one  is  governed  by  the  honest 
convictions  of  his  own  mind,  no  one  can  say 
a  word.  What  I  dislike  is,  this  educating 
a  child  into  hypocrisy  —  of  which,  we  all 
know,  there's  enough  without — by  allow- 
ing him  to  talk  constantly  of  things  he  can 
not  possibly  understand,  evidently  with  the 
idea  that  it  makes  him  quite  superior  to 
the  rest  of  the  world." 

"It  is  wonderful  how  much  they  can  un- 
derstand, sir,  and  delightful  to  see  with  what 
simple  faith  they  often  lay  hold  of  religious 
truth.  Still  of  course,  I  agree  with  you  that 
we  can  not  guard  them  too  much  against  any 
thing  like  hypocrisy  and  spiritual  pride,  but 
I  have  always  thought  these  not  so  often  dis- 
cernible in  children  as  in  those  who  are  older, 
humility  and  docility  being  the  distinguish- 
ing traits,  we  are  most  apt  to  attribute  to 
them.  With  regard  to  early  religious  educa- 
tion, we  have  surely  great  encouragement  in 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  37 

the  promise :  '  Train  up  a  child  in  the  way 
he  should  go,  and  when  he  is  old  he  will  not 
depart  from  it.'  " 

"  Yes,  yes  ;  I  don't  question  the  propriety 
of  bringing  children  up  well;  all  that  I  ob- 
ject to  is,  clouding  their  young  lives  with 
gloomy  terrors  of  an  hereafter,  they,  poor 
innocent  lambs,  have  no  cause  to  dread,  or 
with  thoughts  of  death  before  their  time, 
Eeligion  is  a  very  sober  thing,  not  much  cal- 
culated to  make  any  one  happy  in  this  world, 
you  must  admit,  and  it  seems  to  me  wholly 
unfitted  for  the  young.  Indeed,  my  dear 
child,  I  have  been  intending  to  beg  you  to 
try  to  divert  our  sweet  Alice's  thoughts  from 
it  somewhat.  Depend  upon  it,  it  does  her 
harm!  I  'wish  you  would  gratify  me  by 
making  the  experiment.  Put  away  her  Bible 
and  prayer-book,  together  with  those  other 
religious  books  she  is  so  fond  of  reading, 
and  replace  them  with  amusing  comedies,  or 
diverting  games  and  young  company.^  I 
believe  in  less  than  a  week  she  would  forget 
her  cough,  and  her  cheeks  begin  to  plump 
4 


38  THE  CANTERBUKY  BELLS. 

out  again,  and  yours  too,  perhaps,  if  you  will 
join  her." 

"0  father!  father!  how  I  wish  I  could 
tell  you  the  degree  of  happiness  which  such 
a  course  would  deprive  my  dear  child  of! 
She  must  tell  you  herself  how  very  sweet 
she  finds  the  joys  of  religion,  and  how  little 
the  pleasure  she  derived  from  other  sources, 
in  the  days  of  health,  in  her  bright  and  joy- 
ous girlhood,  can  compare  with  that  peace 
*  which  passeth  all  understanding,'  found  in 
the  fellowship  she  has  enjoyed,  in  her  sick- 
room, with  her  blessed  Saviour.  You  speak 
of  religion  as  a  '  sober,  gloomy  thing,  at  best, 
for  any  one  in  this  world.'  Indeed,  it  is  a 
mistaken  idea !  Why,  without  referring  to 
the  hopes  we  cherish  of  the  life  which  is  to 
come,  there  is  not  a  day  of  my  life  that  it 
does  not  make  me  ready  to  exclaim:  'The 
lines  are  fallen  unto  me  in  pleasant  places, 
yea  I  have  a  goodly  heritage  !' " 

As  Mrs.  Lee  ceased  speaking,  the  old  gen- 
tleman looked  up  with  some  surprise  at  her 
kindling  eye  and  the  glow  of  deep,  earnest, 
hopeful  feeling  which  flushed  her  usually 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  39 

calm,  pale  face ;  lie  murmured  something 
about  religious  enthusiasm,  but  was  evidently 
touched  and  softened.  Presently  he  said 
somewhat  abruptly : 

"  Well,  well ;  I  have  no  business  quarrel- 
ling with  the  faith  of  others,  although  my 
own  bitter  experience  has  rather  injured  my 
capability  of  believing  any  thing  that  is  not 
very  plain  and  direct.  Oh  ! 

'  Hypocrisy,  the  only  evil  that  walks 
Invisible,  except  to  God  alone,' 

shows  so  hideous  a  face  when  the  vail  is 
once  lifted,  that  it's  scarcely  a  wonder.  I 
should  live  in  dread  of  a  second  sight  of  her 
forever  after !  But  you  almost  make  me  be- 
lieve, while  I'm  talking  with  you,  that  real 
sincere  religion  is  a  freer  and  a  happier  thing 
than  I  have  accustomed  myself  to  regard  it." 

"  And  I,  on  my  part,  feel  the  fullest  as- 
surance that  there  is  light  yet  in  store  for 
you,  sir.  Yes,  I  know  that  your  sun  is  not 
to  set  in  darkness"  she  replied. 

General  Lee  gave  her  an  earnest,  searching 
look  of  inquiry  as  he  asked  with  evident 
emotion : 


40  THE   CANTEEBUKY  BELLS. 

"  How  can  you  say  tliat  you  know  this,  my 
dear?" 

"  ( If  ye  abide  in  me  and  my  words  abide 
in  you,  ye  shall  ask  what  ye  will  and  it  shall 
be  done  unto  you !'  is  my  pledge,  father.  Too 
many  faithful  prayers  have  been  offered,  to 
leave  me  room  for  a  moment's  doubt." 

The  old  gentleman  brushed  a  tear  from 
his  eye,  and  quickly  assuming  a  light  and 
cheerful  tone,  turned  to  Mr.  Ludwell,  saying: 

"I  did  not  mean  to  occupy  so  much  of 
the  time  you  had  intended  to  employ  dif- 
ferently. Let  us  go  without  further  delay, 
therefore,  to  the  proper  business  of  the  even- 
ing. I  move,  in  the  first  place,  that  I,  grand- 
pa, be  elected  chairman  of  the  committee.  All 
in  favor  of  this  motion  please  to  say  ay." 

"Ay!  ay!  ay!"  was  shouted  out  with 
great  animation. 

"  Now  all  not  in  favor  of  it  will  signify 
the  same  by  saying,  '  No  !'  "  said  grandpa, 

"No!"  called  out  Frank,  "  our  eldest  son,1 
a  manish  boy  of  fifteen.  "I  move  that  the 
proceeding  is  irregular,  and  that  grandpa 
let  us  name  our  own  chairman." 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  41 

"  Hey-day !  that's  a  pretty  republican  spirit 
to  manifest  towards  your  elders,  young  man ; 
however,  to  encourage  you  in  your  ideas  of 
regularity,  etc,  I  withdraw  and  allow  you 
to  have  the  election  over,"  said  grandpa. 

Frank  then  nominated  grandpa,  himself, 
and  the  votes  were  this  time  unanimous. 

"I  move,'7  said  Mr.  Ludwell,  "that  little 
Emmy  and  Charlie  be  given  into  mammy's 
keeping  for  the  night,  they  showing  evident 
signs  of  unfitness  for  the  consideration  of  the 
important  matter  we  liaye  at  this  time  be- 
fore us." 

This  was  also  promptly  seconded  and  car- 
ried without  a  dissenting  voice.  Accordingly 
mammy  soon  appeared,  accompanied  by  her 
adjunct  Marion,  and  the  two  sleeping  child- 
ren were  carried  off  to  the  nursery.  After 
various  suggestions  and  much  discussion,  it 
was  at  length  agreed  that  good  old  Mrs. 
Banks  should  be  pressed,  if  possible,  into  the 
service.  Mrs.  Banks  was  an  old  and  attached 
friend  of  the  family,  who  had  lived  with  Mr. 
Lad-well's  father  and  mother  when  he  was  a 
boy,  and  had  nursed  most  of  his  children  when 
4* 


42  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

they  were  babies.  The  children  were  all 
devoted  to  her,  and  highly  delighted  at  the 
prospect  of  being  placed  under  her  motherly 
care  instead  of  being  sent  to  spend  the  time 
with  different  relations  or  placed  at  boarding- 
schools.  There  were  two  objections  to  this 
plan  which  must,  however,  be  obviated  ;  first, 
Mrs.  Banks  was  growing  very  old,  and  could 
scarcely  be  expected  to  consent  to  leave  her 
quiet,  snug  little  cottage-home  in  "Washing- 
ton, at  her  time  of  life,  to  take  entire  charge 
of  a  large  family  of  children  and  servants. 
The* young  people  looked  so  disappointed, 
when  this  difficulty  was  represented,  that 
grandpa,  whose  delight  it  was  to  gratify  their 
every  wish,  said :  "  Never  mind,  my  children ; 
don't  be  troubled  about  that.  I  know  how 
to  set  a  trap  for  the  old  woman  that  will  be 
sure  to  catch  her ;  leave  it  to  me  to  manage 
my  own  way,  and  mother  Banks  will  be  sure 
to  come." 

"  How  will  you  do  it,  grandpa  ?  Do  please 
tell  us." 

uXo,  no,  not  to-night.  I've  got  a  little 
surprise  on  foot  for  more  than  one  of  you." 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  43 

The  other  difficulty  was  about  their  educa- 
tion. Mr.  Ludwell  thought  of  a  tutor ;  but 
not  knowing  a  suitable  person  to  employ, 
disliked  the  thought  of  intrusting  them  to  a 
perfect  stranger  in  his  absence.  Finally,  he 
concluded  that  the  best  plan  would  be  to  send 
the  elder  girls  to  Frank's  schoolmaster,  an 
Irish  gentleman  named  McLeod,  who  taught 
in  the  family  of  a  widow  lady,  Mrs.  Brown, 
living  about  two  and  a  half  miles  from  Bel- 
mont.  "  In  good  weather  the  walk  will  do 
the  lassies  good,  and  when  it's  bad  they  must 
ride,"  he  said. 

Mrs.  Ludwell  looked  very  much  discon- 
certed, however,  at  this  arrangement. 

"  I  don't  think  it  will  answer  at  all,  Mr. 
Ludwell,"  she  said.  "I  never  could  allow 
our  girls  to  attend  a  mixed  school  of  that 
kind ;  for,  in  the  first  place,  I  should  be  so 
nervous  about  their  contracting  some  conta- 
gious disease;  and  then,  I  know  such  asso- 
ciation can  not  fail  to  make  them  rude  and 
unpolished." 

Mr.  Ludwell  laughed  merrily. 

"  Is  there  more  danger  of  contag'on  for  the 


44  THE   CANTERBURY   BELLS. 

girls  than  the  boys,  then,  my  dear  Emma? 
I'll  warrant  you,  Mrs.  Banks  will  take  pre- 
cautions enough  about  that  too.  Do  you  re- 
member, Annie,  those  two  years  we  spent  in 
Washington  in  our  school-days  ?  How  anx- 
ious the  old  lady  would  become  at  every 
rumor  of  small-pox  or  scarlet-fever  having 
broken  out,  and  the  little  camphor-bags  we 
wore  round  our  necks  to  charm  them  off  ?" 

"  Oh  !  perfectly ;  and  what  implicit  faith  I 
placed  in  mine ;  but  you  were  always  skep- 
tical, much  to  Mrs.  Banks's  annoyance.  I 
confess,  however,  upon  the  other  point,  I 
agree  with  Emma.  It  does  not  seem  very 
desirable  to  have  the  children  placed  under 
just  such  influences." 

"  I'll  be  bound  for  you  aristocrats  I  Why, 
I'll  ask  Mrs.  Brown  to  keep  an  eye  upon  our 
children ;  and,  if  you  think  it  best,  to  put  them 
all  to  themselves  on  a  different  side  of  the 
room  from  the  rest.  I  believe  there's  some- 
thing in  the  Bible  about  saying :  '  Stand  thou 
there,  for  I  am  holier  than  thou.'  Isn't 
there?" 

"  Yes  ;  but  I  don't  think  it  is  applicable  in 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  45 

this  case,  brother.  We  are  only  for  guard- 
ing the  young  from  temptation ;  not,  I  hope 
and  believe,  exclusively  from  any  spirit  of 
pride,  but  simply  for  prudence's  sake." 

"  This  would  not  be  my  choice,  if  I  saw  any 
thing  less  objectionable  to  be  done ;  but,  as  we 
have  so  little  time  for  our  preparations,  I  can 
not  possibly  look  round  for  a  trusty  and  re- 
sponsible tutor — for  a  few  months  only  I  am 
^ure  no  harm  can  be  done  to  the  children's 
Dolish  and  refinement." 

Accordingly,  after  a  little  more  discussion 
of  the  question,  this  arrangement  was  decided 
upon. 

"0  papal  what  a  different  thing  Annie 
and  I  will  find  it,  to  study  our  lessons  for 
Mr.  McLeod,  from  saying  them  to  you  in 
your  nice  library,  and  having  you  to  talk  to 
us  about  them  afterwards,  and  make  them  so 
interesting,"  said  Clara  despondingly. 

"  Now,  Miss,  not  one  word,  if  you  please, 
in  disparagement  of  our  l Academy?  "  said 
Frank.  "  I  wish  you  could  just  have  seen 
that  tall  young  gent  from  Richmond,  who  ar- 
rived day  before  yesterday.  He  had  seen  in 


46  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

the  papers  the  advertisement  of  '  Cedar  Grove 
Classical  Academy,'  and  thought  he  was 
coming  to  some  grand  institution  of  learning 
no  doubt.  But  he  does  not  believe  in  our  lit- 
tle log  school-house,  with  the  benches  and 
desks  all  cut  and  hacked,  and  two  little  dingy 
windows  with  dimity  curtains,  being  the 
place  for  him  to  spout  his  Thucydides  and 
Sophocles.  You  never  saw  any  thing  so 
blank  as  his  face  when  he  stared  round  the 
room.  As  for  Mr.  McLeod  and  the  rest  of 
us,  he  concluded  at  once  we  could  be  nothing 
better  than  a  set  of  numskulls.  In  my  opin- 
ion, however,  he  never  had  half  as  good  a 
teacher  in  his  life  as  Mr.  McLeod ;  and  when 
he  was  pretending  he  wouldn't  read  the  pass- 
age which  was  given  him  in  Horace,  it  was 
only  because  he  couldn't.  He  actually  asked 
me  how  Mr.  McLeod  learned  to  speak  Eng- 
lish so  well,  since  he  has  only  been  in  this 
country  a  year?  I  took  the  greatest  plea- 
sure in  putting  on  a  knowing,  important 
look,  and  asking  him  if  he  did  not  know 
that  all  educated  Irish  people  speak  "Eng- 
lish?" 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  47 

"But,  Frank,"  asked  his  mother,  "does 
Mr.  McLeod  permit  the  boys  to  tell  him 
they  won't?" 

"  No,  indeed,  ma'am ;  and  this  young 
man  is  going  right  back  to  his  uncle.  Mrs. 
Brown  was  quite  imposed  on  by  his  preten- 
tious ways,  and  tried  very  hard  to  please 
him  about  his  accommodations ;  but  when 
he  came  into  Mr.  McLeod's  department,  he 
soon  showed  him  how  much  lie  thought  of 
him." 

"I'm  very  glad  he  is  going  away,  I'm 
sure.  But  now,  tell  me,  Frank,  which  are 
the  nicest  little  girls  there  ?" 

"  Oh ! .  there's  one  who  will  suit  Clara's 
taste,  I  know,  exactly ;  her  name  is  Jose- 
phine Ball.  I  expect  she  is  just  Clara's  age, 
and  very  pretty,  with  light  curling  hair  and 
rosy  cheeks,  and  dresses  so  nicely,  too,  in 
a  dark  brown  merino  with  a  white  linen 
apron,  coming  up  high  in  the  neck,  and  a 
ruffle  round  the  throat ;  but  she  makes  such 
simple  mistakes  about  her  lessons  that  every 
body  laughs  at  her.  To-day  it  was  a  little 
worse  than  usual,  though.  She  was  saying 


48  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

her  history  lesson  about  the  silver  mines  in 
South- America,  that  the  Indian  discovered 
as  he  was  going  up  the  mountain,  by 
pulling  up  a  weed  and  finding  silver  cling- 
ing to  the  roots.  Mr.  McLeod  was  trying 
to  make  Miss  Josephine  give  the  account 
of  it  in  her  own  words;  but  she  stut- 
tered and  stammered  so  that  he  had  to 
help  her  out  witTi  every  word.  "Very 
good,  Miss  Josey,"  he  said  in  the  kindest 
tone,  to  encourage  her.  "You  said  that 
the  Indian  caught  hold  of  something  to  keep 
him  from  falling.  Can't  you  remember  what 
it  was  ?  You  know  it  came  up  in  his  hand, 
and  he  found  silver  clinging  to  the  roots. 
Now,  what  was  it  ?" 

"  His  nose,  sir !"  Josephine  drawled  out 
with  her  face  as  red  as  crimson,  and  look- 
ing as  simple  as  I  don't  know  what.  Oh  ! 
there  was  such  a  laugh  in  the  school !  Mr, 
McLeod  couldn't  help  laughing  himself, 
though  he  tried  not,  because  Josey  looked 
so  ashamed,  and  cried  very  much  about  it ; 
but  little  Jack  Brown  had  no  mercy  on  her, 
for  he  would  keep  slipping  up  to  her  after 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  49 

school,  and,  putting  his  finger  on  his  nose, 
wonder  if  Miss  Josey  wouldn't  please  find 
a  silver-mine  at  his  roots.  Poor  little  Josey 
was  so  teased  by  him  that  I  had  to  stop  him 
by  asking  how  he  spelt  butterfly,  which  he 
had  made  luttifly  one  day  in  his  spelling- 
class.  Mr.  McLeod  made  us  all  laugh  too, 
once,'  with  his  Irish  brogue.  He  gave  the 
boys  i obsthreperous"1  to  spell,  instead  of  ob- 
streperous, and  was  all  out  of  patience  be- 
cause the  boys  would  put  in  the  '  h.'  They 
did  it  on  purpose  too,  most  of  them." 

"Fie I  fie!  Frank!"  said  grandpa,  inter- 
rupting him  and  laughing  heartily,  "have 
you  no  conscience  about  telling  tales  out  of 
school  ?  I  wish  some  of  your  school-fellows 
were  here  to  turn  the  tables  upon  you,  for 
I'll  be  bound  you  have  twisted  your  Latin 
sentences  out  of  shape,  many  and  many  a 
time.  I  should  not  wonder,  indeed,  to  hear 
of  something  as  laughable  as  the  little  Irish 
boy's  translation  of  that  beautiful  passage 
in  Yirgil,  when,  according  to  Gerald  Griffin 
he  made,  Acri  gaudet  equo,  '  rejoices  upon 
his  bitther  horse.'  '  Oh  !  murther  alive  T 
5 


50  THE  CAXTERBUKY  BELLS. 

says  the  poor  masther — an  Irishman  too, 
you  see,  Frank,  'his  bitther  horse?  Erra, 
what  would  make  a  horse  be  bitther,  Jim  ? 
Sure  'tis  not  of  sour  beer  he  is  speaking! 
Rejoicin'  upon  a  bitther  horse  !  Dear  knows 
what  a  show  he  was !  What  raison  he  had 
for  it.  Acri  equo,  upon  his  metthelsome  steed  I 
that's  the  construction.'  Can  you  beat  that, 
master  Frank?  I  think  at  last  our  anec- 
dotes have  reconciled  Clara  to  your  aca- 
demy, if  we  may  judge  by  her  merriment. 
Such  immoderate  laughter,  my  daughter, 
is  hardly  dignified  enough  for  'Miss  Lud- 
well,'  the  deputy  head  of  the  family.  See ! 
we  shall  have  to  depose  you,  miss,  if  you 
do  not  compose  yourself  instantly,  and  try 
that  demure  little  grandmother  Susy ;  but 
no !  that  won't  do  either,  for  I  have  a  com- 
plaint against  her  too.  She  promised  at 
dinner  that  I  should  have  my  cocoa  when  I 
waked  from  my  afternoon  nap." 

"  0  grandpa !  I  am  so  sorry  I  forgot  all 
about  it.  Harry  and  George  kept  me  busy 
until  dark,  covering  their  balls.  Ts  it  too 
late  now,  sir  ?" 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  51 

"  Too  late  ?  "Why,  yes,  my  dear ;  for  once 
at  least  the  old  adage, '  Better  late  than  never, 
is  out  of  place.  Go  call  Peter  to  light  my 
pipe,  and  then,  as  an  especial  reward  for 
your  excellent  memory,  I  mean  to  submit  to 
the  house  a  capital  motion,  which,  I  am  per- 
fectly sure,  will  not  call  forth  a  single  dis- 
senting vote  from  you  young  commoners, 
whatever  the  executive  committee  may  find 
to  say  on  the  subject." 

"Now,  grandpa,"  said  Susy,  shaking  her 
finger  reproachfully  at  him,  "  what  did  you 
say  that  part  about  my  memory  for  ?"  and 
then,  having  quickly  discharged  her  errand, 
she  came  running  back  to  rejoin  the  eager 
young  group,  who  were  already  quite  impa- 
tient for  the  announcement  of  this  great 
scheme  of  grandpa's  which  proved  noth- 
ing less  than  that  -their  cousins  Thomas 
snd  Susan  Forrest  should  be  asked  to  let 
Alfred,  Lizzie,  and  Fanny  come  to  stay  at 
Belmont,  and  go  with  them  to  school. 
Grandpa  said  he  thought  the  youngsters 
ought  to  have  some  more  cheerful  and  con- 
genial society  than  that  of  a  rheumatic  old 


52  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

woman  and  an  Irish  pedagogue,  especially 
as  they  were  not  to  associate  very  intimately 
with  their  school-fellows. 

"What  a  grand  idea  that  is,  grandpa! 
I'm  heartily  obliged  to  you  for  my  part,  I'm 
sure,"  said  Frank. 

"  Dear  papa !"  said  Clara,  with  her  cheeks 
glowing  and  her  eyes  sparkling.  "I  know 
you  will  not  make  any  objection ;  you  know 
how  we  will  miss  you  and  dear  mamma,  and 
not  even  Lizzie  and  Fannie  can  take  your 
places ;  but  it  will  help"  to  keep  us  from 
being  so  very  lonesome.  Annie  will  like  it, 
too,  so  much,  for  she  does  not  know  the 
girls  yet  so  well  as  we  do,  and  she  wants 
to,  very  much. 

"  You  little  witch !"  said  the  father,  pat- 
ting affectionately  her  rosy  cheeks.  "  You 
think  you  can  coax  papa  into  any  thing 
when  you  put  on  that  pleading  face,  and 
speak  in  those  persuasive  tones,  but  grand- 
pa will  have,  first,  to  promise  to  keep  you 
all  out  of  mischief  when  you  put  your  wild 
heads  together." 

"  No,  no !"  said  the  old  gentleman,  laugh- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  53 

ing  heartily.  "  To  tell  the  truth,  I'd  scarce- 
ly like  to  venture  a  peep  at  Belmont  while 
the  cats  are  away  and  the  mice  at  play." 

"  Oh !  I  trust  they  will  not  be  very  wild 
and  ungovernable,"  said  Mrs.  Ludwell  anx- 
iously. 

MI  have  no  fear  on  that  score,"  said 
her  husband ;  "  for  I  rely  on  their  self-re- 
spect and  sense  of  honor ;  they  will  surely 
not  let  us  regret  having  placed  our  confi- 
dence in  these.  The  elder  ones,  I  mean,  and 
the  little  ones  Mrs.  Banks  will  keep  nnder 
due  restraint." 

"  To  be  sure,  to  be  sure  1"  said  General 
Lee.  "No  doubt  they  will  be  twice  as  well 
behaved  and  proper,  as  when  you  are  at 
home.  I  intend,  however,  going  abroad  too 
— Alice  and  her  mother  shall  be  under  my 
charge,  for  I  think  It  will  be  better  that  the 
two  invalids  should  not  depend  upon  each 
other's  movements." 

In  vain  Mrs.  Lee  remonstrated  against 
this  arrangement ;  knowing  the  old  gentle- 
man's abhorrence,  hitherto,  of  a  sea-voyage, 

she  tried  to  convince  him  that  she  would  be 
5* 


54  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

able  to  manage  every  thing  very  well  for 
her  dear  child.  "You  know,  dear  father, 
that  the  power  of  a  mother's  love  can  sup- 
ply experience,  skill  and  strength,"  she  said. 
But  he  would  not  yield  his  point,  and  she 
rose  to  leave  the  room,  saying  she  was  en- 
tirely discomposed  at  finding  all  her  argu- 
ments unavailing.  Mrs.  Ludwell  stopped 
her,  however,  as  she  was  bidding  her  good- 
night to  ask,  which  she  did  with  some  hesi- 
tation of  manner,  if  she  would  not  let  the 
children  sing  with  her  that  beautiful  hymn 
she  had  taught  them. 

"  Yes,  Aunt,  do !  here  is  your  place  at 
the  old  organ,  and  I  want  you  to  tell  us  if 
we  have  not  improved  some,"  said  Clara* 

Mrs.  Lee  seated  herself  promptly,  and 
the  children  gathered  round  her,  while  she 
played  a  spirited  accompaniment  and  led 
the  little  choir  in  Bishop  Ken's  beautiful 
evening  hymn : 

"  Glory  to  thee,  my  God,  this  night 
For  all  the  blessings  of  the  light." 

Sweet  voices  and  fine  musical  powers  were 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  55 

inherited  gifts  in  the  united  families  of  the 
Lees  and  Ludwells,  and  as  the  rich  notes 
rose  and  fell,  General  Lee  laid  aside  the 
pamphlet  he  had  at  first  taken  up,  and  keep- 
ing time  with  his  foot,  listened  with  undis- 
guised delight ;  while  Mr.  Ludwell,  car- 
ried back  to  those  by-gone  years,  when  in 
the  same  room,  the  same  old  organ  had  re- 
sounded beneath  his  honored  father's  touch 
and  his  own  voice  had  been  united  with 
those  of  his  mother  and  two  gentle  and 
beautiful  sisters,  in  their  Sunday-evening 
hymns,  was  much  moved ;  and,  after  look- 
ing very  tenderly  for  a  few  moments  at 
Mrs.  Lee,  the  only  surviving  one  of  those 
beings  arouftd  whoiB  his  earliest  affections 
had  been  so  closely  entwined,  yielded  at 
length  to  the  inspiration  of  the  moment 
and  joined  in  the  animated  chorus  : 

"Praise  God,  from  whom  all  blessings  flow; 
Praise  him,  all  creatures  here  below ; 
Praise  him,  above,  ye  angelic  host, 
Praise  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost." 


CHAPTER    III. 

"  0  AXXIE  !  isn't  this  a  nice  '  trap '  that 
grandpa  has  set  to  catch  Mrs.  Banks  in? 
And  won't  we  have  a  delightful  time  travel- 
ling with  him  to  the  city  ?  He  is  the  very 
kindest,  dearest  grandfather  in  the  world," 
said  Clara,  on  the  second  morning  after  the 
evening  described  in  the  last  chapter,  as  her 
cousin  and  herself,  left  the  breakfast-table  to- 
gether, looking  both  pleased  and  excited. 

"  Indeed  it  is,  Clara,  a  very  nice  trap  ;  but 
suppose  after  all  it  don't  catch  Mrs.  Banks. 
Suppose  she  doesn't  mind  our  begging  as 
much  as  grandpa  expects  she  will?  Any 
how,  it  is  just  like  him  to  plan  this  little  trip 
for  us,  and  I  know  we  will  enjoy  ourselves 
very  much.  Yes,  indeed,  dear  grandpa 
knows  how  to  make  us  happy.  I  do  love 
him  so  much 1" 

"  You've  been  to  "Washington  as  often  as 
I  have,  I  expect,  Annie,  for  papa  never 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  57 

hardly  lets  us  go  away  from  home ;  lie  says 
lie  wants  us  to  stay  here  and  have  our  young 
friends  to  come  and  see  us,  so  we  may  love 
it  better  than  any  other  place  and  be  happy 
among  ourselves." 

"  I  wonder  if  every  body  doesn't  love  their 
home  the  very  best,  and  wouldn't  be  glad  to 
stay  there  always,  except  just  sometimes  for 
a  little  while  to  see  what  other  people  are 
doing?  But  I  expect  uncle  must  know 
some  people  who  don't,  or  he  wouldn't  be  so 
very  particular,"  answered  Annie. 

"  Yes,  papa  says  that  children  who  are 
allowed  to  go  about  much  after  strangers 
sometimes  get  tired  of  their  best  friends,  and 
don't  take  as  much  pains  to  make  them 
happy  as  they  do  other  people.  I  don't 
know  how  they  can  feel  so  though,  for  I 
never  saw  any  one  I  could  love  as  much  as 
I  do  my  relations  if  I  were  to  try.  Next  to 
Aunt  Annie  and  you  all,  I  love  our  cousin 
Forrests,  and  I  know  you  will  like  them  ever 
so  much,  too,  when  you  know  them  well." 

"  I  expect  I  will,  but  I  never  saw  them 
except  those  two  days  we  spent  in  "Washing- 


58  THE  CANTERBUKY  BELLS. 

ton  on  our  way  home  after  we  came  to  see 
you  that  time,  when,  you  know,  my  dear 
father  and  little  Lucy  were  alive." 

"  Oh !  I  remember  that  time  so  well,  and 
how  much  I  admired  Alice  for  being  such  a 
little  lady  as  she  seemed  to  me  when  she 
used  to  rock  Lucy  to  sleep  and  sing  to  her, 
4  By  a  baby  buntin' !  Daddy's  gone  a  hunt- 
in',  to  get  a  rabbit's  skin  to  wrap  the  baby 
buntin'  in.'  I  thought  it  so  very  pretty,  that 
I  was  very  anxious  to  imitate  her  with  our 
little  Alice,  as  she  was  the  baby  then,  but 
somehow  I  couldn't  make  Alice  love  me  as 
Lucy  did  her  sister  Alice.  At  last  what  do 
think  happened  one  day  ?  I'll  tell  you  if 
you'll  promise  not  to  tell  any  body  else.  0 
dear!  I  can't  help  laughing,  though  I  feel 
ashamed  too,  when  I  think  of  it!  Mamma 
had  company  staying  here,  Marion  was  sick, 
and  mammy  was  wanted  for  something  down- 
stairs while  the  family  were  at  dinner.  So 
she  told  me,  if  E  chose,  I  might  stay  in  the 
nursery  and  have  the  baby  all  to  myself  to 
take  care  of  and  amuse  her.  As  I  was  going 
out  of  the  room  'Cousin  Jane  Gray  said: 


THE   CANTERBUKY  BELLS.  59 

'  ISTow,  Clara,  let's  see  what  a  good  little 
nurse  you'll  make,  and  when  you  get  your 
little  child  to  sleep,  come  back  to  us.' 
This  made  me  in  a  great  hurry  to  send  poor 
little  Alice  off  to  the  land  of  Nod ;  but  she 
was  teething  and  cross,  and  kept  on  fretting 
until  I  got  out  of  patience,  because  I  thought 
I  never  would  get  back  to  .the  parlor  before 
the  company  were  gone,  and  besides,  I  was 
afraid  they  would  think  I  wasn't  a  good 
nurse.  At  last,  in  despair,  I  took  her  and 
laid  her  in  the  deep  lower  -drawer  of  the  bu- 
reau, and  shut  it  up  tight,  thinking  she'd 
soon  get  tired  of  crying  in  there  and  go  to 
sleep.  I  was  going  down-stairs  after  this, 
very  much  •  pleased  with  my  clever  trick, 
when  Alice  Lee  came  up  to  help  me  to 
nurse  the  baby,  she  said;  but  not  seeing 
the  child,  only  hearing  its  smothered  cries, 
she  looked  very  much  frightened,  and  asked 
me  where  she  was.  I  smiled  and  pointed  to 
the  drawer.  Alice  ran  to  open  it  and  took 
Allie  out,  telling  me  I  might  have  killed  my 
little  baby-sister.  You  may  depend  upon  it 
I  was  frightened  i/ien-j  and  begged  her  not  to 


60  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

tell  mamma.  Alice  looked  very  grave  and 
said: 

"  '  No,  Clara,  I  will  not  if  you  don't  wish 
it,  and  will  promise  never  to  do  any  thing  of 
the  kind  again ;  but  if  I  were  you  I  would 
go  right  to  Aunt  Emmy  and  tell  her  all 
about  it  myself.  Nothing  would  make  my 
mother  so  sorry  as  to  find  us  hiding  things 
from  her,  and  I  expect  Aunt  Emmy  feels 
so  too.'  So  then  I  went  to  mamma  and 
told  her  what  I  had  done." 

"And  what  did.  Aunt  Emmy  say?"  asked 
Annie,  who  had  listened  with  breathless  in- 
terest to  the  story. 

"Oh!  she  said  very  little,  but  looked  so 
shocked!  She  never  told  any  one,  even 
papa  about  it,  and  can't  bear  to  think,  even 
to  this  day,  of  what  might  have  happened — 
she  says  it  makes  her  nervous  and  almost 
sick.  It  was  a  long,  long  time  I  can  tell 
you,  before  she  ever  let  any  of  us  play  in  a 
room  by  ourselves  with  the  little  children." 

"You  were  so  very  small,  Clara,  that  I 
can  not  understand  how  you  managed  at  all." 

"Well,  you  see,  mammy  had   put  little 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  61 

Allie  on  a  sheep-skin  mat  to  play  with  her 
shells,  right  close  to  the  bureau,  and  I 
thought  if  your  Alice,  who  was  two  years 
older  than  me,  could  carry  Lucy  about  in 
her  arms,  I  might  certainly  just  move  Allie 
that  far.  But,  please,  Annie,  don't  forget 
and  tell  any  body  of  me.  Frank  would 
never  be  done  teasing  me  about  being  in 
such  a  hurry  to  be  a  woman,  if  he  was  to 
know  it." 

"Come,  girls,  are  you  most  ready?  The 
roads  are  not  very  fine  at  this  season,  so 
we've  no  time  to  lose,"  called  their  grand- 
father's voice  from  below-stairs. 

"  Yes,  sir,  we'll  hurry  on  with  our  bonnets 
in  a  few  minutes,"  answered  Clara. 

"Yery  well;  tell  mammy  to  be  quick 
with  the  little  ones  too — they  are  all  to  go; 
down  to  lady-bird  Phebe." 

At  this  news  Clara  gave  Annie  rather  a 
disconcerted  look,  and  said  with  a  thought- 
ful, troubled  air : 

"  I'm  very  sorry  so  many  are  going.  I'm 
afraid  they'll  be  very  much  in  the  way." 


62  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Oh  !  no,  Clara,  they  won't,"  said  Annie; 
"  we  can  sit  up  close  together,  and  they'll 
enjoy  it  so  much,  we  won't  mind  crowding 
for  them." 

"  I  don't  mind  the  crowding  the  least  bit  in 
the  world ;  but  I  don't  like  going  to  the  city 
in  such  a  troop.  I'm  afraid  it  will  make  the 
people  laugh  to  see  such  a  quantity  of  child- 
ren, and  as  we  are  strangers,  they  won't  know 
that  we  are  genteel  people  either.  The  car- 
riage will  look  like  a  show-nursery,  or  like 
Cousin  Jeffs  little  cage  full  of  Java  spar- 
rows," replied  Clara. 

Her  grandfather  had  approached  by  this 
time  sufficiently  near  to  hear  this  remark 
without  being  perceived  by  the  two  girls, 
until  he  said,  with  some  haughtiness  in  his 
tones : 

"  I  should  really  think  that  Miss  Ludwell 
might  sufficiently  respect  herself  and  her 
family  to  be  unaffected  by  any  remarks  from 
passing  strangers.  Let  them  laugh !  What 
have  you  to  do  with  their  laugh  ?  Is  it  not 
enough  that  you  are  born  in  a  position  which 
makes  you  independent  of  the  frowns  or 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  63 

smiles  of  society.  Leave  those  to  whom  they 
can  be  of  any  consequence  to  be  governed  by 
such  puerile  reasoning.  I  insist  upon  the 
show-nursery  and  the  cage  of  Java  sparrows." 
It  was  not  long  now  before  the  large  fam- 
ily coach  was  waiting  for  them.  Tom,  the 
driver,  was  mounted  on  the  box,  dressed  in 
his  trimmest  suit  and  laden  with  commissions 
from  his  fellow-servants,  which  made  him 
feel  exceedingly  important  as  he  drew  the 
large  bearskin  over  his  limbs,  and  nodded 
knowingly  in  answer  to  the  last  demand 
made  upon  his  time  in  the  city.  The  pam- 
pered grays  were  arching  their  beautiful 
necks,  and  snorting  impatiently,  while  Gen- 
eral Lee's  groom  was  holding  the  bridles  of 
his  own  and  his  master's  horse,  and  caressing 
the  creatures  to  keep  them  quiet,  when  the 
old  gentleman  appeared  at  the  head  of  his 
little  troop.  First  came  Clara,  in  a  pelisse  of 
rich  dark  blue  silk  and  a  black  velvet  bon- 
net, imitating  as  closely  as  possible  a  grown 
lady's.  She  had  little  occasion  for  these  her 
best  things,  in  the  country  in  winter,  and  ac- 
cordingly this  unexpected  opportunity  of  dis- 


6i  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

playing  them  in  the  city  was  hailed  with  pe- 
culiar pleasure. 

u  If  mamma  would  only  have  lent  me  her 
black  lace  vail,  I  should  have  looked  so 
nicely,  and  I  think  she  might,  as  I  am  thir- 
teen now,  and  tall  of  my  age,  too,  every  body 
says,"  she  thought  to  herself  as  she  walked 
on  with  a  dignified  step  and  holding  her 
head  very  high ;  but  she  felt  quite  contented 
again  as  she  glanced  at  Annie's  mouse-colored 
merino,  trimmed  with  velvet,  and  her  modest 
little  velvet  bonnet  with  a  simple  child-like 
cap,  which  was  extremely  becoming  to  her 
full  fresh  young  face.  Little  Tommy,  in  his 
rich  plaid  winter  clothes,  and  dark  blue  vel- 
vet cap  over  his  long  light  auburn  ringlets, 
looked  "  like  a  picture,"  the  children  said,  as 
he  clung  close  to  Annie's  side.  Then  came 
the  two  boys,  Harry  and  George — one  eleven 
and  the  other  nine  years  of  age,  in  suits 
of  dark  green  cloth.  And  the  little  sisters, 
Susy  and  Alice,  with  only  one  year  between 
them,  and  twins  in  size,  dressed  in  pelisses  of 
fine  scarlet  cloth,  trimmed  with  a  rich  bor- 
dering of  dark  blue  aad  gold,  with  arms 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  65 

twined  round  each  others'  waists,  whispered 
mysteriously,  and  bobbed  their  little  chin- 
chilla fur  hats  together  like  "two  little  ponies 
in  harness,"  as  Frank  used  to  call  them. 
Last  of  all  came  the  real  twins,  Emma  and 
Charlie.     It  was  so  established  a  rule  in  the 
nursery  that  they  were  to  dress  alike,  that 
the  children  often  puzzled  themselves  about 
what  should  be  done  when  Charlie  got  to 
be  a  big  boy;   but  as  they  were  only  six 
at    present,    both    appeared    in    blue    with 
swan's-down    borders.      Mammy,    a    portly 
old  mulatto  woman,  followed  the  children 
in  her  dress  frock  of  invisible  green  stuff, 
white  apron,  large  warm  shawl,  and  a  spot- 
less turban    under    her    comfortable    hood. 
On  one  arm  she  carried  a  very  large  cov- 
ered   basket,    containing    a  suit  of    clothes 
apiece  for  the  whole  party.     On  the  other, 
a  smaller  one  of  biscuits  and  cakes  for  lun- 
cheon.    Mammy  felt  the  responsibility  of 
her    charge,    notwithstanding    "grandpa's" 
presence,  and  was  very  uneasy  lest  the  child- 
ren should  do  something  beneath  the  family 
dignity.     She  had  coaxed  and  petted  Charlie 
6* 


66  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

into  promising  to  be  good  and  obedient,  but 
Beemed  still  very  unbelieving  in  those  pro- 
mises ;  the  rest  she  entertained  with  long 
legends  of  their  family  grandeur,  and  how 
beautiful  their  "ma"  always  behaved  herself 
when  she  was  young,  deducing  the  moral  of 
how  much  "is  'spected  fromgentlemun's  child- 
ren when  they  goes  abroad."  The  carriage 
being  wide  and  roomy,  by  dint  of  close  pack- 
ing and  squeezing,  and  sitting  some  upon 
the  others'  laps,  the  children  all  found  places, 
the  large  basket  being  mounted  with  Tom  on 
the  box,  and  the  smaller  one  sharing  mam- 
my's lap  with  Emma.  The  footman  was  dis- 
pensed with,  General  Lee's  attendant,  Peter, 
being  found  sufficient  for  all.  As  they  were 
about  to  start,  the  old  gentleman  rode  up  to 
the  carriage-window  and  looked  in  with  an 
air  of  satisfaction  ;  then  tapping  Clara  on  the 
shoulder,  said  with  a  mischievous  laugh: 
"It's  a  fine  brood,  my  dear — does  credit  to 
the  mother  hen,"  glancing  at  mammy.  After 
which  he  touched  his  steed  with  his  spur, 
which  he  still  wore,  and  was  soon  at  some 
distance  in  advance  of  them,  while  Peter  held 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  67 

in  his  horse  and  rode  between  the  two  parties. 
For  the  first  half-hour  excitement  subdued 
all  the  children,  and  they  rode  peacefully  on. 
Clara  and  Annie  unfolding  to  the  rest  all 
their  plans,  how  they  were  sent  expressly  to 
ask  Mrs.  Banks  to  come  and  stay  with  them 
and  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Forrest  to  let  their  cousins 
come. 

"  Mrs.  Banks  never  nursed  me  when  I  was 
a  baby,  and  I  an't  going  to  mind  her,"  said 
Charlie. 

"  Oh !  but  you  must,  Charlie,  or  mother 
and  father  will  be  angry.  If  she  didn't  nurse 
you,  it's  only  because  she  was  very  sick  her- 
self and  couldn't,  but  she  nursed  papa  even, 
and  all  of  us  down  to  you  and  Emma,"  said 
Susy. 

"  Don't  care ;  I  am  going  to  bite  her  I"  an- 
swered Charlie,  at  the  same  time  pulling  tufts 
out  of  Emma's  swan's-down  trimming,  and 
blowing  them  off  out  of  the  window,  pleas- 
ing himself  with  an  imaginary  flock  of  white 
geese,  until  Emma  discovered  his  depreda- 
tions, and  made  loud  complaints  to  mammy, 


68  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

showing  at  the  same  time  the  bartl  spots 
with  great  indignation. 

"  JSTow,  Mas'  Charles  !"  said  mammy  with 
unusual  mildness  and  patience,  "  don't  trouble 
yer  sister  any  more,  please,  that's  a  good  boy ; 
jes'  see  how  ugly  you  made  her  cloak  look 
aready." 

But  Charlie  didn't  feel  inclined  to  oblige 
her  ladyship  ;  so  with  a  sly  mischievous  look 
in  his  face  he  grabbed  out  a  larger  handful 
and  sent  it  flying  through  the  air  with  a  great 
puff;  Emma  cried  at  this  outrage,  and  mam- 
my shook  him,  saying : 

"  Oh !  you  is  certainly  the  greatest  torment 
ever  any  body  seed.  Mas'  Charles !  ef  you 
can't  behave  like  a  gentleman's  son,  I'll  make 
Tom  put  you  out  in  them  woods  for  the  run- 
aways to  catch." 

"  Don't,  mammy,"  said  Annie.  "  Mothei 
says  its  such  a  bad  plan  to  frighten  children. 
Come,  Charlie,  sit  over  here  by  sister  Clara 
and  me,  and  be  a  good  boy  and  I'll  tell  you 
and  Tommy  a  story." 

Charlie  changed  places  with  George,  and 
there  was  peace  again  while  Annie  told  him 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  69 

about  a  poor  little  Indian  boy  who  was  found 
in  the  woods,  not  far  from  her  father's  plan- 
tation in  the  South— how  Cousin  Alice  used 
to  teach  him  to  read  and  be  good,  and  how 
fast  he  learned,  and  was  a  very  good,  obe- 
dient little  boy;  but  he  died  after  a  while 
and  went  to  heaven.  But  every,  body  was 
sorry  to  lose  him,  because  he  was  kind  and 
obliging,  and  loved  every  body. 

"  Well !  I  don't  care  if  he  did.  I'm  not 
going  to  die,  and  go  to  heaven.  I'm  going 
to  grow  up  to  be  a  man,  and  fight  the  In- 
dians with  a  gun,"  said  Charlie ;  and  soon 
after  this,  little  Tommy  who  had  been  winc- 
ing and  moving  about  on  Annie's  lap,  whis- 
pered very  low  in  her  ear,  while  the  tears 
stood  in  his  large  blue  eyes  : 

"  Sister,  he  hurts  me  so  bad,  tant  he  stop 
pincing  me?"  The  color  rose  in  Annie's 
cheek,  and  her  eye  flashed  indignantly  as 
she  looked  down  and  saw  several  large  pur- 
ple spots  on  her  dear  little  brother's  white 
arm  and  shoulder. 

"You  naughty,  naughty  boyJ"  she 


70  THE  CAOTERBURY  BELLS/ 

turning  to  Charlie  and  pushing  him  impa- 
tiently off  the  seat ;  "  how  could  you  do  so  ?'' 

"Charlie!"  said  Clara,  "I  shall  get  Tom 
to  ask  grandpa  to  come  here  with  Ms  riding- 
whip  and  make  you  behave,  and  I  shall  ask 
mamma  not  to  let  you  come  next  time.  You 
ought  to  be  ashamed  to  treat  your  little  cou- 
sin so." 

Charlie  looked  defiantly  at  her,  and  with- 
out making  any  answer  raised  his  hand  and 
struck  Tommy  a  hard  blow  in  the  face. 
The  little  fellow  struggled  bravely  for  some 
moments,  but  it  was  in  vain ;  the  tears  would 
flow,  and  he  hid  his  head  in  Annie's  bosom 
and  sobbed.  The  color  left  Annie's  cheek 
as  quickly  as  it  had  come.  She  was  too 
angry  to  speak  at  first,  but  at  length  regain- 
ing somewhat  her  composure,  she  said : 

"Clara,  I  must  speak  to  grandpa  about 
this,  for  you  see  Charlie  will  not  behave, 
and  I  can  not  let  Tommy  be  hurt." 

The  suddenness  of  Charlie's  attack  had 
taken  every  one  by  surprise,  and  at  first 
they  all  seemed  stunned ;  but  now  there  was 
a  general  outcry,  and  Tom  was  ordered  to 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  71 

stop  the  carriage  and  call  Peter,  who  came 
riding  back  to  see  what  the  matter  was. 
Upon  being  informed,  he  looked  at  Charlie 
fiercely,  and  began  talking  about  his  large 
knife,  and  threatening  to  cut  off  the  young 
gentleman's  head;  but  Annie  stopped  him, 
saying  quietly : 

"Just  tell  grandpa,  if  you  please,  Peter, 
that  Charlie  is  very  naughty,  and  we  can 
not  ride  with  him  in  the  carriage  until  he  is 
made  to  behave." 

"What!"  said  General  Lee,  when  he  had 
investigated  the  matter.  "What!  has  the 
little  preacher  been  in  a  fight  ?  Fie !  for 
shame,  you  young  belligerents !  I  must 
separate  you,  and  bind  you  over  to  keep 
the  peace,  must  I  ?" 

"  Grandpa,  it  was  all  Charlie's  fault,  indeed 
it  was.  Tommy  did  not  do  one  thing  to 
him — he  didn't  even  touch  him,"  exclaimed 
a  great  many  little  voices  at  once.  "You 
ought  just  to  know  how  bad  Charlie  is, 
sometimes"  they  added. 

"Well,  but  I'm  afraid  master  Tommy  is 


72  THE   CANTEEBUKY  BELLS. 

a  cry-baby.  He'd  better  have  fought  it  oat 
like  a  man,  and  have  done  with  it." 

"  Mamma  says  I  never  must  fight,  sir. 
God  won't  tate  me  up  to  heaven  if  I  do.  I 
twied  to  teep  fwom  twying,  but  Charlie  hurt 
me  so  I  tould  not  help  it.  I'm  afwaid  some- 
thing will  happen  to  him  if  he  don't  tate 
tare,"  said  Tommy,  holding  up  his  head  and 
wiping  away  the  tears  from  his  little  swollen 
face. 

"  Why,  you  benevolent  little  rascal,  was  it 
that  made  you  cry?  Here  Peter,  take  this 
young  scapegrace  and  put  him  up  before 
you  on  the  saddle — see  that  you  hold  him 
tight,  and  if  that  impertinent  'something' 
makes  another  grab  for  him  let  me  know. 
Don't  be  uneasy,  master  Tommy,  he  shan't 
get  him  if  hard  blows  will  prevent,"  said 
his  grandfather  with  mock  seriousness. 

There  was  an  expression  of  relief  and 
pleasure,  as  Charlie  was  withdrawn  from 
the  carriage.  He  smiled,  also,  and  looked 
quite  pleased  at  the  prospect  of  charge. 
Mounted  up  before  Peter,  he  took  posses- 
sion of  his  whip  and  amused  himself  tick- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  73 

ling  the  horse's  ears,  or  cutting  at  the  leafless 
branches  as  they  passed.  Every  now  and 
then,  too,  he  attempted  by  some  question  or 
remark,  to  attract  his  grandfather's  atten- 
tion: but  the  old  gentleman,  after  eyeing 
him  keenly  for  a  few  minutes,  left  him  en- 
tirely unnoticed,  preserving  an  unbroken  si- 
lence and  an  imperturbable  countenance,  for 
he  was  in  fact  far  more  displeased  at  his  con- 
duct than  he  had  thought  fit  to  manifest 
publicly,  and  was  meditating  such  an  act  of 
discipline  as  Charlie  little  dreamt  of. 

The  equestrians  being  some  miles  in  ad- 
vance of  the  carriage,  reached  the  half-way 
house — a  small  country  inn  at  which  they 
were  to  dine,  about  an  hour  before  the  rest 
of  the  party,  The  host  of  the  "  Franklin 
Hotel "  was  an  honest  Pennsylvanian  demo- 
crat who  held  in  high  regard  the  memory 
of  the  Patriarch,  whose  portrait  in  strong 
colors  waved  backward  and  forward  in  front 
of  his  door.  An  old  copy  of  "  Poor  Kichr 
ard's  Almanac,"  which  had  been  his  fa- 
ther's before  him,  and  had  received  more 
than  one  new  brown  cover,  still  adorned  the 
7 


74  THE  CAXTEKBUKY  BELLS. 

three-cornered  shelf,  in  "his  best  parlor,  made 
to  hold  his  large,  old,  leather-backed  Bible 
and  hymn  book.  And  he  was  never  weary 
of  quoting  on  all  occasions  its  pithy  sayings. 

When  Mr.  Gunnel  saw  from  the  window, 
General  Lee  and  his  body-servant  approach- 
ing, he  instantly  began  to  make  preparations 
for  his  reception,  calling  first  in  a  stentorian 
voice  to  Judy,  the  house-maid,  to  have  a 
roaring  fire,  to  air  the  chamber  above ;  and 
to  Jack,  the  ostler,  to  be  ready  to  "  tend  to 
the  GrineraTs  horses."  He  then  stationed  him- 
self in  waiting  on  the  long  portico,  holding 
in  his  hand  the  rough  cob-pipe,  just  taken 
from  his  lips ;  and  tucked  under  his  arm,  his 
unfinished  newspaper.  With  a  broad  grin 
on  his  red-whiskered  face,  he  made  at 
length  his  profoundly  respectful  salutations 
to  his  guest,  and  took  Charlie  down  from 
the  horse,  patting  him  heartily  as  he  did  so, 
and  saying :  "  Fine  little  boy,  Gineral — one 
of  Mrs.  Ludwell's,  I  calculate." 

"  Yes !"  said  General  Lee,  laconically. 
Then  having  given  directions  for  dinner  to 
be  prepared  for  his  party,  he  ordered  Peter 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  75 

to  carry  up-stairs  a  tub  of  water  and  a  stout 
bunch  of  rods — the  last  of  which  directions 
made  his  little  companion  start  and  look  up 
in  his  face  with  a  wondering  expression. 

Peter,  as  he  started  off  with  alacrity  to 
execute  his  master's  orders,  gave  the  child 
a  significant  and  most  unsympathizing  wink. 
The  General  being  naturally  of  a  gentle  and 
kind  disposition,  loving  to  indulge  those 
around  him,  and  often,  at  the  expense  of 
his  own  personal  comfort,  had  scarcely  ever 
in  his  life  been  known  to  inflict  corporal 
punishment,  but  he  had  his  theory  on  this 
as  well  as  other  subjects,  and  when  he  once 
felt  called  upon  to  show  the  Spartan  side  of 
his  character,  went  through  the  business 
systematically  and  thoroughly — the  tub  of 
water  being  the  indispensable  accompani- 
ment to  the  bunch  of  rods. 

In  the  present  instance  he  had  been  roused 
to  indignation  by  the  wanton  cruelty  of 
Charlie's  attack  upon  his  gentle  and  un- 
offending little  fatherless  cousin  —  a  fault 
which  to  his  chivalrous  and  generous  na- 
ture, seemed  too  shocking  to  pass  unno- 


76  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

ticed,  and  he  had  accordingly  resolved  to 
give  him  a  lesson  not  soon  to  be  forgotten. 
The  cowardly  meanness  of  his  conduct  was 
most  eloquently  enlarged  upon  to  the  child, 
and  then  a  sound  flogging  was  administered, 
with  the  utmost  coolness  and  precision,  after 
which  he  was  delivered  up  to  Peter  to  be 
soused  in  cool  water  until  his  passion  had 
subsided,  and  good  humor  was  restored. 
The  success  of  this  mode  of  operation  was 
fully  proved,  by  the  radiant  smiles  and 
glowing  cheeks  with  which  Charlie,  cling- 
ing fondly  to  his  grandfather's  coat-tails, 
presented  himself  at  the  tavern-door  to 
meet  the  carriage,  when  it  drove  up  half 
an  hour  afterwards. 

Whilst  the  horses  were  resting  and  din- 
der  was  preparing,  he  pointed  out  to  Tom- 
my and  Emma  the  picture  of  Franklin  on 
the  swinging  sign,  and  other  wonders  which 
he  had  discovered  about  the  place  before 
their  arrival.  But  he  was  particularly  assi- 
duous in  his  attentions  to  Tommy,  and  even 
shared  with  him  the  handful  of  chestnuts, 
which  the  good-natured  Judy  had  given 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  77 

him  in  pity  for  his  whipping.  The  child- 
ren  wondered  at  this  marvellous  change  in 
his  conduct,  but  it  was  not  long  before  the 
secret  of  it  crept  out,  being  communicated, 
with  humorous  circumstantiality,  by  Peter 
to  George  and  Harry,  while  they  were  su- 
perintending Tom  rubbing  down  the  horses ; 
and  from  them  it  was  passed  round  in  con- 
fidential whispers  to  the  rest,  who  were  not 
less  surprised  than  Charlie  himself,  at  this 
new  phase  of  grandpa's  character. 

When  the  journey  was  resumed,  Charlie 
was  very  willing  to  take  a  seat  in  the  car- 
riage, and  with  his  head  resting  on  mam- 
my's shoulder,  took  a  long  nap.  Indeed 
the  whole  party  were  nodding  their  heads 
long  before  they  reached  Mr.  Forrest's,  it 
being  quite  dark  when  they  drove  up  to 
his  door.  Grandpa  with  his  man,  went  im- 
mediately to  the  hotel,  promising  to  come 
round  to  breakfast  the  next  morning 

The  little  country  cousins  received  a  cla- 
morous welcome  from  their  city  relatives, 
and  scarcely  had  they  taken  breath  before 
the  object  of  their  visit  was  stated  and  the 


78  THE  CANTEBBURY  BELLS. 

promise  obtained  that  they  would  beg  their 
father  and  mother  to  send  them  to  Belmont 
to  school,  and  before  bed-time  came  they 
had  actually  gained  "Cousin  Thomas  and 
Susan's"  consent — as  much  to  the  delight  of 
the  young  Forrests,  as  of  the  little  Lees  and 
Ludwells.  The  three  youngest  children 
were  very  glad  to  take  an  early  supper  and 
retire  to  their  snug  little  beds,  but  the  others 
were  too  excited  and  happy  to  feel  sleepy. 
Many  a  merry  game  was  played  first,  and 
many  a  long  story  told,  and  childish  secret 
communicated ;  but  at  last  the  time  came 
for  pairing  off,  and  having  each  chosen  a 
congenial  friend,  they  all  went  off  up-stairs 
to  enjoy  each  others  society,  to  the  last 
waking  moment. 

Fannie,  Lizzie,  and  Clara,  having  tried  in 
vain  to  induce  Annie  to  let  Tommy  share  the 
apartment  prepared  for  the  little  ones,  under 
mammy's  guardianship,  were  at  length  ob- 
liged to  be  contented  with  having  him  also 
in  their  room,  even  at  the  risk  of  his  over- 
hearing and  betraying  their  most  confiden- 
dential  communications. 


CHAPTEE   IY. 

BEFOKE  any  of  her  young  room-mates 
were  awake  next  morning,  Annie  had  risen, 
noiselessly  dressed  herself,  and  said  her 
prayers;  then  she  went  to  her  little  brother 
and  kissing  his  little  pouting  lips,  waked 
him  that  they  might  have  a  quiet  time  to- 
gether ;  when  he  had  said  his  morning  hymn 
and  prayer  to  her,  she  read  a  chapter  in  the 
Bible  aloud,  just  as  her  mother  was  in  the 
habit  of  doing  every  day  with  her  children. 
She  selected  the  healing  of  the  nobleman's 
son,  and  Tommy's  eyes  were  fastened  ear- 
nestly upon  her,  as  if  he  was  drinking  in 
every  word.  When  she  had  finished  and  laid 
the  book  down,  she  still  held  him  thought-  , 
fully  on  her  lap. 

"Sister,"  said  the  child,  " Mustn't  that 
little  boy's  father  have  felt  glad  when  he 
came  back  and  found  his  son  well  again  ?" 


80  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Yes,  indeed,  Tommy  !  for  lie  legged  Jesus 
to  come  and  cure  him.  Didn't  he  ?" 

"  If  I  was  to  see  him,  0  my !  I  would 
bed  him  so  hard  to  tome  and  ture  my  sister 
Allie,  and  I'd  ast  him  to  do  it  very  tuick,  too, 
BO  that  mother  won't  have  to  do  away  and 
tate  her  from  you  and  me,  sister  Annie." 

"  But,  dear  little  brother,  don't  you  re- 
member that  mother  says  he  hears  us  when 
we  pray  just  as  much  as  if  we  were  looking 
at  him  ?" 

"  Yes,  I  wemember,  but  I  teep  fordetting 
it,"  said  the  little  fellow  looking  thoughtful 
and  serious.  "  Well,  I'll  ast  him  all  over 
adain,  please,  please  to  tome  now  this  minute." 
So  he  knelt  once  more  at  his  sister's  knee, 
and  putting  his  hands  over  his  eyes  which  he 
closed  tightly,  in  his  own  lisping,  childish 
language,  "  poured  out  his  heart  before  the 
Lord,"  entreating  the  same  good  Saviour  who 
had  so  kindly  healed  the  little  sick  boy  of  whom 
lie  had  just  been  reading,  to  come  quickly 
and  cure  his  dear  sister  Allie,  and  not  to 
bring  such  a  sad  trouble  upon  Annie  and 
himself  as  to  send  their  mother  and  sister  far 


THE   CANTERBURY   BELLS.  81 

away  from  them  over  the  great  wide  sea. 
Little  Tommy,  in  thus  looking  with  simple, 
fervent  trust  to  the  great  Physician,  the 
Healer  of  soul  and  body,  was  early  practising 
the  lessons  learned  from  his  pious  mother's 
example  as  well  as  precept ;  and  as  again  and 
again  he  had  heard  her  annex  to  her  suppli- 
cation for  some  greatly  desired  blessing  the 
clause,  "  Thy  will,  not  mine  be  done,"  he 
now  closed  with  these  words  his  own  petition,, 
although  of  course  he  had  but  a  child's 
imperfect  comprehension  of  their  meaning. 

Oh !  that  all  those  who  govern  and  teach 
might  ever  thus  lead  the  little  ones  to  the 
only  true  Source  of  consolation  in  the  hours 
of  suffering  and  sorrow. 

When  he  had  finished  his  little  prayer  he 
rose,  and  with  a  happy,  confident  look,  threw 
his  arms  round  Annie's  neck,  and  kissing  her 
several  times,  said :  "  Now,  darling  sister, 
we'll  be  dlad  too,  won't  we  ?" 

By  this  time  his  cousins  were  all  awake, 
and  Fannie  Forrest  springing  up,  caught  him 
in  her  arms,  and  kissing  him,  said  : 


82  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  0   Tommy !   you  are   too  sweet  —  and 
the  funniest  child  I  ever  saw." 

Tommy  drew  back  and  opened  his  eyes 
with  a  look  of  surprise,  as  if  wondering  what 
was  sweet  and  funny  in  what  he  had  just  been 
doing.  Mammy  now  appeared  at  the  door 
with  Charlie  and  Emmy  by  the  hand,  whose 
toilet  she  had  made  with  scrupulous  care,  and 
had  intended  offering  her  services  to  "  Mas 
Tommy,"  if  Annie  had  not  anticipated  her  ; 
but  nothing  remained  for  her  now  except  to 
propose  his  going  down  with  his  little  cou- 
sins to  the  dining-room,  to  play  until  break- 
fast-time. Annie  quickly  decided  to  go  too,  * 
as  she  was  determined  to  keep  a  watchful 
eye  on  her  little  pet  when  "  Mas  Charles" 
was  at  hand.  Q-randpa,  true  to  his  word, 
joined  them  at  breakfast,  and  happy  and 
bright  was  each  little  face,  as  he  planned  for 
them  the  proceedings  of  the  day.  Scarcely 
could  steady,  deliberate  old  Mammy  hurry 
herself  enough  in  getting  them  ready,  after 
they  left  the  table.  There  seemed  so  much 
to  be  done  and  so  much  to  be  seen,  that  they 
were  sure  the  day  would  not  be  long  enough 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  83 

for  all,  unless  they  began  very  early.  At 
last,  .however,  they  were  off.  Grandpa 
holding  Charlie  and  Tommy  by  the  hand, 
headed  the  phalanx,  and  Mammy  with  her 
pet  Emmy,  brought  up  the  rear.  Now, 
young  readers,  you  must  remember  that 
sight-seeing  in  the  great  capital,  was  not, 
fifty  or  sixty  years  ago,  exactly  what  it  is  to- 
day. Still  there  was  a  great  deal  there  to 
astonish  and  interest  a  set  of  little  country 
children  who  had  scarcely  ever  before  been 
so  far  from  home.  And  the  shops  which 
stood  at  wide  intervals  from  each  other,  dis- 
played in  their  windows  many  coveted  toys 
and  bons  bons  for  the  palms  which  were 
burning  to  spend  the  contents  of  their  little 
purses.  Fannie  and  Lizzie,  however,  more 
experienced  shoppers,  laughed  at  their  eager- 
ness, and  restrained  the  rest  from  many  an 
injudicious  bargain.  As  for  grandpa,  he 
never  seemed  to  get  tired  of  indulging  their 
whims ;  indeed,  the  odder  they  were,  the 
more  amused  he  appeared  to  be,  and  would 
dodge  in  and  out  of  the  stores,  with  the  great- 
est patience  and  good  humor.  At  last,  as 


84  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

they  were  passing  an  apothecary's  store  at 
the  corner  of  a  street,  Susy  came  running  up 
to  him,  and  touching  his  elbow,  begged  him 
to  let  her  go  in  and  buy  "  one  of  those  great 
large  red  and  blue  things  in  the  window." 

"  What  in  the  world  will  you  do  with  it, 
child?"  he  asked,  laughing  heartily,  "and 
what  do  you  take  it  for?" 

"I  don't  know  what  it  is,  grandpa,  and 
that's  just  what  I  want  it  for.  Mammy  says 
they  look  witchified,  and  I  want  one  to  play 
with,  so  much." 

"  Count  your  money  first,  then,  my  lady, 
and  let's  see  how  the  funds  will  hold  out  for 
such  a  speculation." 

Susy  took  out  a  very  small  purse  of  red 
and  green  silk,  which  her  sister  Clara  had 
knit  for  her,  and  exhibited  with  great  satis- 
faction five  little  silver  coins ;  not  doubting 
that  grandpa  would  think  that  sum  sum- 
cient  for  any  purchase. 

"  Let  me  see,  five  four-pences  I"  said  he 
counting  them  very  demurely.  "  Well,  now 
let's  ask  Mr.  Shopkeeper  his  price,"  and  to 
Lizzie  and  Fannie's  unspeakable  astonish* 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  85 

ment  in  lie  walked,  making  a  signal  for  his 
troop  to  follow.  While  they  were  waiting 
for  the  store -keeper  to  come  in,  the  two  girls 
could  not  forbear  stepping  up  and  saying : 

"Why,  Uncle!  are  you  really  going  to 
offer  to  buy  one  of  those  bottles  ?  They  are 
not  for  sale,  sir,  and  the  man  will  laugh  at  us 
if  you  do." 

"  Nevertheless,  cousins,  I  shall  buy  it;  if  I 
can  /  if  not,  the  man  may  laugh,  and  my 
poor  little  Susy  will  be  disappointed,  which 
is  of  much  more  consequence,"  he  answered 
with  a  quiet  smile. 

Dr.  Elliott  now  entered,  and  bowed  and 
smiled  at  the  crowd  of  young  customers, 
while  he  secretly  wondered  what  they  could 
want  in  his  store,  not  usually'  so  popular 
with  young  people.  Grandpa  motioned  little 
Susy  forwards  ;  while  the  elder  girls  retreat- 
ed to  the  other  end  of  the  store,  and  turned 
their  backs,  to  avoid  seeming  to  have  any 
concern  in  the  transaction.  Susy  blushed 
deeply,  and  spoke  so  diffidently  that  it  was 
some  time  before  she  made  Dr.  Elliott  under- 
stand what  she  wanted;  and,  when  she  had 


86  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

at  length  succeeded,  he  laughed  and  looked 
at  General  Lee,  to  see  if  a  grave  answer  was 
expected.  Grandpa  then  took  the  matter  in 
hand,  and,  after  some  laughing  remarks  be- 
tween himself  and  the  store-keeper,  the  pur- 
chase was  presently  made,  and  Susy  became 
the  happy  possessor  of  a  large  glass  bottle  of 
colored  water.  The  next  difficulty  was,  how 
it  should  be  carried.  It  was  hard  to  induce 
Susy  to  relinquish  her  treasure;  yet,  there 
was  scarcely  a  doubt  of  its  being  broken,  if 
she  attempted  to  carry  it  herself.  At  length 
mammy  succeeded  in  persuading  her  to  give 
it  to  her,  promising  to  be  very  careful  with 
it;  she  fully  shared  Susy's  admiration  and 
delight,  and  as  they  walked  on  together, 
would  hold  it  up  to  see  the  sun  shining 
through  the  great  orange-colored  stopper, 
and  the  large,  bright  blue,  globe-shaped 
bottle.  After  spending  nearly  all  the  morn- 
ing in  going  from  place  to  place,  grandpa 
and  his  young  charge  returned  home  to  rest 
and  prepare  for  dinner. 

Mr.   and   Mrs.   Forrest  were   very  much 
amused  at  Susy's  fancy  for  her  bottle,  which 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  87 

with  great  difficulty  she  lugged  into  the  par- 
lor for  exhibition,  amongst  the  lot  of  toys 
which  were  displayed  as  the  result  of  that 
morning's  shopping. 

It  was  nearly  five  o'clock  before  dinner 
was  over ;  then  grandpa  laid  down  for  an 
evening  nap,  and  Susy  combed  out  his  long 
white  cue,  which  hung  in  a  silvery  plat 
down  his  neck,  and  talked  him  to  sleep,  with 
her  plans  of  future  fun  and  frolic,  when  the 
grown  people  should  all  be  gone  from  Bel- 
mont,  except  Mrs.  Banks.  "When  convinced 
that  she  was  no  longer  heard,  she  left  him  to 
enjoy  his  repose,  and  joined  her  young  com- 
panions in  their  games  of  blind-man's  buff, 
last  tag,  etc.,  and  this  evening  passed  away, 
as  merrily  as  their  first  in  "Washington. 
'  Next  morning,  Thomas  had  the  carriage 
ready  at  the  door,  quite  soon  after  breakfast ; 
and  under  mammy's  care  they  drove  to  see 
Mrs.  Banks.  Grandpa  had  business  to  keep 
him  from  going  with  them ;  and  Lizzie  and 
Fannie  staid  to  take  a  music-lesson. 

"What  a  tiny  little  house!"   exclaimed 
George,  as  the  carriage  stopped  at  her  door. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Yes ;  I  don't  see  how  any  bocty  could 
turn  round  in  it,"  said  Clara;  "but  it  must 
be  very  sweet  in  the  summer,  when  those- 
vines  are  green  and  blooming  ;  see  how  that 
sweet-briar  covers  nearly  one  side  of  the 
house,  just  leaving  room  for  that  cunning 
little  window  to  peep  out.  I'm  glad  Mrs. 
Banks  lives  there !" 

Thomas  gave  a  loud,  important  rap  on  the 
low  green  door;  and  almost  instantly  was 
answered  by  a  tidy,  light-haired,  freckle- 
faced  little  girl  of  about  nine  or  ten  years 
old,  who  stared  very  hard  at  the  stylish 
carriage,  full  of  " strange  children"  as  she 
waited  to  usher  them  into  the  house.  The 
front-door  opened  directly  into  Mrs.  Banks's 
sitting-room;  which  you  reached,  by  first 
descending  two  steps.  The  children  gazed 
round  upon  the  picture  of  order,  comfort, 
and  neatness,  which  presented  itself,  without 
allowing  the  minutest  article  to  escape  their 
observation.  The  floor  was  covered  with  a 
grave-colored  Scotch  carpet,  and  a  bright, 
warm  fire  glowed  in  the  small,  well-blacked 
Franklin  stove,  with  its  shining  brass  knoba 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  89 

There  was  a  lounge  on  one  side  of  the  room, 
with  a  neat  chintz  cover;  on  another,  a 
semi-circular  table  of  mahogany,  darkened 
by  use  and  time,  bordered  with  narrow  slips 
of  satin-wood ;  there  was  a  tea-chest  on  this, 
and  a  large  Bible,  covered  neatly  with 
brown  paper,  besides  several  books  of  de- 
votion. Behind  the  door  stood  a  tall,  nar- 
row press,  containing  the  household  stock 
of  china  and  glass,  the  two  upper  shelves 
being  reserved  for  the  books  of  a  more 
secular  character.  An  alabaster  urn,  a  pair 
of  plain  old  silver  candlesticks,  and  some 
boxes  of  shells  and  sea-weed,  adorned  the 
mantle-piece,  while  a  good  many  highly- 
colored  Scripture  prints  were  hung  on  the 
walls.  There  was  the  Madonna  and  Child ; 
Peter,  with  a  large,  open-mouthed  cock,  ap- 
parently in  the  act  of  crowing,  beside  him ; 
and  one  or  two  more.  While,  placid  and 
still  as  any  picture,  sat  good  old  Mrs.  Banks 
herself  in  the  chimney-corner,  dressed  in  hex 
neat,  black  stuff  gown,  white  checked  muslin 
apron,  handkerchief  of  sheer  muslin  crossed 
over  her  full  bust;  and  on  her  head  a 


90  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

spotless  cap,  broad  finely-plaited  frills,  and 
a  band  of  black  ribbon  round  the  front.  A 
lock  of  smooth  gray  hair  peeped  out  on 
each  temple,  and  her  mild  yet  intelligent 
blue  eyes,  beamed  lovingly  on  all  around 
her.  She  was  knitting,  when  the  children 
enntered;  with  her  favorite  tortoise-shell 
cat  purring  at  her  feet,  and  a  saucepan  sim- 
mering on  the  fire.  Eliza,  the  little  girl  who 
had  opened  the  door  for  them,  had  been 
spelling  her  lesson  ;  her  book  was  lying  still 
open  on  the  cricket,  where  she  had  been 
seated,  and  near  this,  on  the  floor,  her  work- 
basket  filled  with  calico  quilt-pieces.  For  a 
moment  or  two,  Mrs.  Banks  looked  up  with 
amazement,  at  the  crowd  of  unexpected  little 
visitors:  but  her  face  was  soon  lightened 
up  with  a  glad,  bright  smile  as  she  held 
up  her  hand,  exclaiming: 

"  Bless  me !  is  it  possible  these  are 
me  children  from  Belmont  come  to  see 
me?" 

Then  one  after  the  other  was  folded  in  a 
warm  motherly  embrace. 

"  These  two  are  me  dear  Miss  Hanny's, 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  91 

I  suppose.  Poor  little  dears!"  she  said, 
looking  tenderly  at  the  fatherless  little  Tom- 
my and  Annie. 

She  embraced  and  kissed  Tommy,  as  she 
did  the  rest,  and  was  about,  more  respect- 
fully to  offer  her  hand  to  his  sister;  but 
Annie  stepped  quickly  forward,  and  throw- 
ing her  arms  round  the  old  lady's  neck 
said: 

"  Dear  Mrs.  Banks,  mother  has  taught  us 
to  love  you  for  her  sake,  and  I  must  have 
my  kiss,  too." 

''Bless  you,  my  child! -God  bless  you!" 
answered  she,  smiling  through  her  tears  and 
looking  inexpressibly  gratified.  After  this, 
followed  the  introduction  of  the  twins, 
whom  Mrs.  Banks  had  never  seen  before; 
and  Alice  and  Susy  she  said,  had  grown 
quite  beyond  her  recollection;  Alice  being 
only  two  months  old  when  she  was  last  at 
Belmont, 

"Well,  to  be  sure!  and  how  me  buys 
have  grown  tool  and  George  is  amost 
as  tall  as  Harry!  Little  Susy,  I  suppose, 
can  him  a  henkerchief  for  me  by  this  time," 


92  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

she  said,  turning  each  one  of  them  round  to 
the  light,  and  putting  on  her  spectacles  for  a 
thorough  scrutiny. 

"  Miss  Clara,  I  think  you  look  a  little 
pale,  me  dear,  and  seem  to  have  a  cold,  too. 
Come  close  to  the  fire,  and  put  your  feet  on 
the  fender  to  warm.  Now,  tell  me  all 
about  ma  and  pa,  and  all  the  dear  people 
at  Belmont.  I've  longed  to  look  upon  me 
dear  Miss  Anny's  face,  ever  since  I  heard 
that  she  had  come  again  to  this  part  of  the 
world.  She  has  seen  sorrow,  I  know, 
djear  Miss  Anny;  but  it's  long  since  her 
trust  was  placed  upon  Him  who  has  prom- 
ised to  take  care  of  the  widow  and  the 
orphan." 

When  many  questions  relating  to  the 
family,  had  been  asked  and  answered,  Mam 
my  undertook  to  explain  the  object  of  then 
visit;  and  the  children  clamorously  urged 
her  to  consent  to  their  parents'  request. 
Smiling  at  their  earnestness,  and  looking 
thoughtful,  Mrs.  Banks  promised,  "to  see 
about  it."  "  But  you  must  say  you  will  before 
we  go  away  from  here,"  said  Alice  softly. 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  93 

"  Dear  children,  I  never  expected  to  leave 
here  again,  till  I'm  carried  to  my  narrow 
house,  and  I'll  tell  you  how  it  is  with  me. 
You  see,  I'm  growing  very  old  now,  and 
am  not  at  all  like  I  used  to  be  when,  your 
papa  was  a  buy,  or  even  when  you  were 
babies.  What  can  an  old  woman,  full  of 
aches  and  pains,  do  for  you.  and  what  would 
you  do  with  me  if  I  should  get  sick  ?" 

"I'm  sure  you  won't  be  sick  at  Belmont, 
Mrs.  Banks ;  and  if  you  should  be,  we'll  send 
for  the  doctor,  and  mammy  will  nurse  you," 
said  Alice. 

"  Thank  you,  little  Alice,  but  what  would 
become  of  me  little  children  then  ?" 

"  Oh !  we  could  all  be  very  good  and  mind 
mammy  for  just -two  or  three  days." 

"Well,  but,  Alice,  I've  got  other  reasons 
yet.  Here  is  me  house,  which  I  would  hev 
to  leave,  with  no  body  to  take  care  of  it. 
What  would  poor  pussy  here  do  without 
her  mistress,  and  that  little  girl  Eliza, 
that  just  went  out  of  the  room  —  she  hes  no 
father  nor  mother  —  who  shall  I  leave  her 


94  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

with?  And  then,  there's  a  poor  little 
buy  named  Johnny,  who  hes  a  very  sore 
foot,  which  he  comes  every  day  to  have 
dressed  with  me  salves;  and  a  great  many 
sick  people  come  for  me  physic,  which  does 
them  more  good,  a  great  deal,  than  the  doc- 
tor's. When  me  neighbors  meet  with  any 
accident,  they  always  come  right  to  me  for 
me  ointments  ;  now  if  it  was  only  the  summer 
time,  I'd  show  you  my  little  Aerb  garden,  and 
the  rose  bushes,  where  I  get  roses  for  me 
rose-water." 

"  Is  Eliza's  father  and  mother  loth  dead, 
and  Johnny's  too  ?"  Alice  asked,  seemingly 
so  much  interested  in  their  history  that  she 
could  not  at  present  give  any  thought  to 
pussy,  or  the  house  and  garden. 

"I  do  not  know,  me  child,  whether 
Eliza's  parents  are  dead  or  not,  for  I 
never  knew  even  who  they  were.  John- 
ny's mother's  living ;  but  she's  a  poor, 
sickly  creature.  His  foot  has  been  very 
bad;  but  is  getting  better  now,  and  I 
hope,  by  God's  blessing,  to  make  him  well 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  95 

enough  to  be  of  some  use  to  her  one  of  these 
days." 

"And  where  did  Eliza  come  from?"  in- 
quired Susy. 

"I  found  her  one  morning,  Susy,  when 
she  was  a  little  baby,  in  a  basket,  at  me 
door." 

"  How  did  she  get  there,  I  wonder  ?  did 
her  mother  lose  her  ?  I  expect  she  must'a," 
chimed  in  little  Emmy,  who  had  observed  a 
shy  silence  up  to  this  time. 

"  Some  bad  mothers,  my  dear,  do  not  love 
their  poor  little  children,  or  wish  to  be 
troubled  with  the  care  of  them ;  so  they 
take  them  in  the  night,  and  leave  them  at 
somebody  else's  door." 

"  But  suppose  ^'something  was  to  come  by 
and  Tiurt  the  poor  little  things!  "Was  the 
weather  cold  when  they  left  Eliza  ?"  asked 
Susy. 

"Yes,  much  colder  than  it  now  is,  and 
she,  poor  child,  looked  pinched  and  blue 
enough,  and  had  taken  a  bad  cold  too, 
but  I  cured  her  up,  and  now  she's  very 
strong." 


96  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"Mrs.  Banks,  haven't  you  ever  had  any 
children  of  your  own?"  asked  George  ab- 
ruptly. 

"  Yes,  Georgie,  and  I've  two  now  in 
heaven :  one  of  them  was  just  about 
your  age,  when  he  was  taken  there.  It 
hes  been  a  long  time  since  I  saw  him  with 
these  bodily  eyes,  but  almost  every  day, 
when  I'm  sitting  here  alone,  he  comes  to 
me,  whistling  or  singing,  and  sits  himself 
down  in  his  own  little  chair,  where  Emmy 
is  now,  and  when  we  meet  in  our  Father's 
house,  it  will  seem  but  yesterday  since  we 
parted." 

"Do  you  live  here  all  by  yourself,  Mrs. 
Banks  ?"  asked  Susy. 

"  Oh !  no,  me  child,  I  trust  not,  for  I 
ask  the  blessed  Saviour  to  come  and  dwell 
under  me  roof  with  me ;  and,  you  know, 
he  hes  promised  to  come  when  we  ask  him  ; 
so  I  trust  he  is  always  here.  Then  there's 
little  Eliza ;  and  sometimes  our  Heaven- 
ly Father  sends  some  of  his  poor  people  to 
me,  who  perhaps,  like  the  Lord  Jesus,  hev 
not  where  to  lay  their  heads.  So  I'm  very 


THE   CANTERBURY'  BELLS.  97 

glad  to  give  them  a  place  in  me  house, 
and  part  of  me  food,  as  well. as  some  of 
the  good  words  out  of  this  big  Bible,  I 
sometimes  hev  a. good  many  visitors,,  too,  011 
Saturdays  and  holidays,  the  young  ladies 
and  gentlemen  I  hev  nursed,  or  known 
when  they  were  babies ;  my  children,  you 
know,  I  call  them,  and  I  hev  a  big  family,, 
hevn't  I  ?  So  you  see,  my  dears,  I'm  not  all 
alone  in  the  world." 

"  Will  any  children  come  to  see  you 
to-day?'1. 

"No,  I  think  not ;  but  shall  I  tell  you 
how  I  entertain  them  when  they  do. 
come?" 

"  Oh !.  yes,  indeed,  ma'am,  please  do !"  said 
George. 

"Eliza  has  gone  for  some  of  me  beer, 
which  you  must  taste,  then,  for  I  always 
give  that  to  my  visitors." 

Eliza  now  entered,,  bringing  in  one  hand 
a  small  stone  jug,  and  in  the  other  a  waiter 
of  cups  and  tumblers,  to  which  was  added  by 
Mrs.  Banks  some  o£  her  little  cakes,  shaped 
like  dogs,  horses,  men/ etc.  Then  the  foam- 
9 


98  THE   CANTERBURY   BELLS. 

ing  beer  was  pressed  upon  the  company  most 
hospitably,  while  its  wholesome  properties 
were  dwelt  upon  at  large;  neither  mam- 
my nor  Tom  the  driver  were  neglected  in 
the  entertainment.  The  older  girls  looked 
amused,  the  little  ones  and  mammy  pleased. 
Tom  wiped  his  wide  mouth  quizzically  and 
made  a  wry  face,  before  his  low  bow. 

Besides  this  fondness  for  dosing  her  guests, 
Mrs.  Banks  had  a  certain  peculiarity  in  her 
mode  of  speech,  calculated  to  amuse  them 
quite  as  much.  The  letter  h  she  invariably 
prefixed  to  words  to  which  it  did  not  belong, 
and  dropped  it  again,  where  it  had  a  perfect- 
ly lawful  right  to  appear ;  several  other  let- 
ters also  she  misplaced  or  mispronounced, 
according  to  the  custom  of  the  lower  classes 
in  England.  But  the  good  old  lady  had 
made  the  very  best  use  of  every  opportunity 
for  improving  herself,  and  storing  her  mind 
with  useful  knowledge  and  pious  sentiments, 
so  that  her  conversation  was  always  both  in- 
structive and  interesting  to  the  young  in 
spite  of  this  defect.  "We  have  therefore 
thought  it  worth  while  for  the  convenience 


THE  CANTERBUKY  BELLS.  99 

of  the  reader,  to  translate  it  into  me  re  pro- 
nounceable English. 

While  some  of  the  children  were  amusing 
themselves  with  the  specimens  of  shells  and 
sea-weed,  and  Charlie  was  playing  with 
pussy,  Tommy  pointed  to  one  of  the  Bible- 
pictures  on  the  wall,  and  asked  Mrs.  Banks 
what  it  was. 

"  That's  poor  Peter,  my  children,"  said  the 
old  lady.  "  And  there  you  see,  is  the  cock 
that  crowed  when  Peter  had  three  times  de- 
nied his  Master.  Do  you  remember  that? 
Poor  Peter!  but  I  don't  expect,  master 
Tommy,  that  he  wore  a  bright  yellow  cloak 
exactly  like  this  one." 

"I  know  what  this  one  is,  Emmy,"  said 
Tommy,  turning  from  Peter,  when  he  had 
looked  long  enough  to  satisfy  himself  about 
the  yellow  cloak.  "This  is  our  blessed 
Saviour,  and  the  little  children  when  Jesus 
said :  '  Suffer  little  children  to  tome  unto  me, 
and  forbid  them  not.'  Don't  you  love  the 
tind  Jesus,  Emmy  ?" 

"Yes;  but  I  wish  I  could  see  him,"  re- 
plied Emmy. 


1$0  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

AVhile  the  little  ones  prattled  over  the  pic- 
tures, Clara  and  Annie  were  no  less  inter- 
ested in  Mrs.  Banks's  smallcolleetion  of  books, 
which  she  prized  so  highly.  "  That's  'Her- 
vey's  Meditations,'  Miss  Annie,  a  very  good 
book  indeed,  though  it's  too  sad,  I  believe 
for  some  people.  Many  a  time,  when  I 
was  a  young  girl,  I  walked  through  the 
same  old  churchyard  reading  that  book. 
Ah  !  it's  a  very  solemn  place  for  medita- 
tion there,  among  so  many  dead  whose  poor 
bodies  hev  been  resting  there  under  the 
.ground  so  many  long  years ;  but  who  shell 
all  arise  and  stand  with  us  before  God, 
when  the  last  trumpet  sounds.  Yes  ;  and  I 
once  heard  Mr.  Wesley,  who  wrote  that 
book  of  sermons  in  Miss  Clara's  hand,  preach 
about  the  last  trumpet  sounding  to  the  poor 
^colliers  in  Kingswood.  I  was  a  giddy 
young  creature  until  that  time,  and  was 
on  a  visit  to  me  aunt  in  Bristol.  There 
was  a  riot  among  these  poor  colliers,  be- 
cause times  were  very  hard— grain  was  scarce 
and  high,  and  their  wages  very  low ;  so  it 
was  hard  for  them  to  get  their  daily  bread. 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  101 

Mr.  Wesley  liad  been  preaching  io  them, 
and  some  had  been  converted  through  his 
means.  It  grieved  him,  therefore,  very  much 
to  find  things  going  so  wrong,  and  he  walked 
out  to  reason  with  them  about  their  violence. 
He  was  so  loving  and  kind  and  gentle  to 
them,  that  they  could  not  refuse  to  hear  him. 
Once  they  turned  back  when  they  met  him, 
.though  they  were  all  armed,  marching  to 
Bristol  to  make  an  attack  on  the  officers 
of  government.  When  matters  had  become 
more  quiet,  after  this,  I  went  one  evening 
to  hear  him  preach,  and  to  see  the  colliers. 
Oh !  it  was  a  sight,  my  children,  you 
would  not  soon  have  forgotten,  to  see  these 
poor  men,  as  they  came  crowding  up,  many 
of  them  just  out  of  the  deep  coal-pits,  to  hear 
the  voice  they  loved  so  much.  The  pulpit 
was  only  a  rough  plank  laid  over  a  barrel ; 
but  the  word  was  not  less  powerful  for  that. 
His  text  was:  'The  trumpet  shall  sound, 
and  the  dead  shall  be  raised.' 

"  The  tears  came  streaming  down  those 
poor  grimed  and  blackened  faces  when  he 
said  something  like  this — though  I  can't  re- 


102  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

member  exactly  his  words,  I  shall  never 
forget  the  meaning  of  What  he  said :  '  The 
dead,  yea,  all  the  dead  must  arise,  my 
friends !  and  we  must  each  one  of  us 
stand  in  the  immediate  presence  of  the 
great  and  holy  God,  to  answer  for  the  deeds 
we  have  done  whilst  in  the  body.  Moun- 
tains can  not  cover  ye  then,  nor  rocks  hide 
ye  from  the  wrath  of  God!  But  Jesus  can 
throw  over  ye  the  robe  of;  his  righteousness ; 
and  he  stands  now  full  of  love  in  our  very 
midst,  waiting  with  outstretched  arms,  to  re- 
ceive ye,  if  ye  will  but  turn  to  him ;  oh !  then, 
now,  while  ye  may  go  and  be  saved,  surely 
ye  will  not  refuse  to  hear  the  call  of  a  waiting 
Saviour  /  Ye  could  not  be  so  ungracious  as 
to  let  him  call  and  wait  and  plead  in  vain 
—  only  for  your  poor  sinful  hearts.'  My 
own  heart  was  melted,  dear  children,  for  the 
first  time.  I  could  not  stand  against  such 
an  appeal  as  that.  I  went  home  to  weep 
and  pray,  and  at  last  found  the  peace 
which  nothing  has  ever  disturbed,  as  long 
as  I  keep  my  eyes  fixed  where  Mr.  Wesley 
pointed  them — upon  Him  who  has  invited 


THE   CANTERBURY   BELLS.  103 

us  to  put  our  trust  under  the  shadow  of  bis 
wing.  Trouble  only  comes  when  we  turn 
away  from  Him." 

These  recollections  of  the  past  had  greatly 
excited  and  animated  good  old  Mrs.  Banks. 
The  children  ceased  from  their  different  oc- 
cupations, to  watch  with  interest  her  earnest 
countenance,  and  listen  to  her  thrilling  de- 
scriptions which  seemed  to  bring  the  whole 
scene  vividly  before  them.  She  next  took  up 
a  small  volume  in  a  bright  cover,  saying : 
"This  is  a  little  book  me  niece  sent  me  — 
'  Montgomery's  Poems.'  He  was  born  near 
me  old  home,  and  I  saw  him  many  times 
as  an  infant  in  the  arms.  I  hev  seen, 
too,  and  spoken  to.  the  mother  of  the  young 
lady  that  they  tell  me  he's  been  sad  a  long 
time  about.  He's  a  great '^<fet^4he  greatest 
of  poets  in  affliction!  And  yet  he  knows 
how  to  praise  too.'  I  ghmild  never  get  tired 
if  you  young  ladies  were  to  begiti  reading 
his  pieces  to  me,  so  I'd  better  not  ask  for 
any.  But  may  be  Miss  Clara  or  Miss  Annie 
you'd  read  me  this  little  scrap  I've  cut  from 
a  newspaper ;  my  eyes  are  too  dim  now 


104:  THE   CANTEEBUEY  BELLS. 

except  for  big  print ;  but  I  keep  this  for  my 
young  friends  to  read  to  me  sometimes,  not 
hoften  though,  for  hit's  most  more  than  I  can 
bear." 

As  Annie  was  standing  next  her,  she  put 
the  paper  in  her  hand,  and  she  read  as  she 
was  desired,  Campbell's  piece  on  visiting  the 
home  of  his  forefathers.  Her  voice  was  sin- 
gularly sweet,  and  her  reading  always  very 
touching  and  beautiful ;  but  of  late  a  new 
chord  had  been  struck  in  her  young  heart, 
which  added  a  deeper  pathos  to  her  tones ; 
and  she  had  not  proceeded  far,  before  good 
old  Mrs.  Banks  bowed  her  head  upon  her 
breast  and  sobbed  aloud.  The  home  of  her 
childhood  was  passing  before  her,  and  the 
desolation  of  years  in  one  moment  swept  over 
her  soul !  But  why  should  that  home  so  long 
viewed  through  the  dim  vista  of  years  and 
the  softening  shadows  of  the  past  rise  so 
vividly  and  with  such  poignant  regret  before 
those  eyes  which  must,  ere  many  more  length- 
ening shadows  can  have  fallen  round  her 
pathway,  open  upon  the  glories  of  the  hea- 
venly inheritance  ?  Surely  after  so  many 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  10.5. 

years  of  calm  endurance  and  patient  waiting, 
Satan  can  not  tempt  that  meek  spirit  to  repine, 
or  cease  looking  towards  that  beautiful  city 
which  is  every  day  drawing  nearer  and  nearer. 
There  was  only  a  moment's  struggle,  how- 
ever, before  the  aged  pilgrim,  with  an:  evi- 
dent effort,  regained  her  composure,  and,  tak- 
ing up  the  words  of  the  last  stanza,  in  a  sub- 
dued voice  repeated : 

"  Be  hushed,  my  dark  spirit !  for  wisdom  condemns 

When  the  faint  and  the  feeble  deplore  ; 
Be  strong  as  the  rock  of  the  ocean  which  stems 
A  thousand  wild  waves  on  the  shore. 
To  bear  Is  to  conquer  our  fate." 

| 

"Mrs.  Banks,"  said  Annie,  after  a  few 
minutes'  silence,  looking  at  the  old  woman 
with  gentle  sympathy :  "  Would  you  not  like 
me  to  read  for  you  now,  my  mother's  favorite 
chapter  about  our  new  home  ?"  She  took  up 
the  Bible,  as  she  asked  this  question,  and  open- 
ed it  at  the  chapter  in  Eevelation  to  which 
she  referred.  Mrs.  Banks  gladly  assented; 
and  when  it  was  finished,  said,  with  her  usual 
placid  smile : 


106  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"Thank  you,  dear,  sweet  child.  It  is  a 
blessed  thing  to  look  forward  to  a  home 
where  we  shall  meet  no  more  sad  changes, 
and  from  whence  we  shall  go  no  more  out 
forever}'1 

Mammy  now  suggested  that  it  was  time 
for  them  to  go,  and  they  bade  the  kind  old 
nurse  good-by.  Alice  whispered  in  her  ear : 

"  I  don't  know  what  you  must  do  with  the 
house  and  garden,  but  you  can  bring  Eliza 
and  Pussy  to  Belmont,  and  indeed  you  must 
corne  and  take  care  of  us  while  mamma  and 
papa  are  away." 

The  next  morning  our  little  friends  left  the 
city,  delighted  with  their  trip,  and  impatient 
to  tell  of  all  the  wonders  they  had  seen  and 
heard. 


CHAPTEK    Y. 

Two  weeks  of  busy  preparation  had  passed 
since  the  children's  visit  to  the  city.  Mrs. 
Banks  had  come,  and  the  farewells  of  friends 
and  neighbors  were  over.  To-morrow  the 
travellers  were  to  start,  and  nothing  now 
remained  but  the  packing  of  a  few  last  things. 
The  children  in  Mrs.  Ludwell's  nursery  were 
sound  asleep,  and  "  mammy"  was  snoring  in 
her  soft,  feather  bed,  close  to  little  Phebe's 
cradle. 

"Poof  little  things!  how  soundly  they 
sleep,  all  unconscious  of  the  anxiety  and 
suffering  which  it  costs  their  poor  mother  to 
leave  them,  or  how  they  may  miss  her  while 
she's  gone,"  said  Mrs.  Ludwell,  as  she  walked 
round  from  one  little  bed  to  another,  having 
risen  from  her  own  restless  couch,  and  come, 
full  of  maternal  love  and  solitude,  to  take  a 
last  look  at  them  before  she  composed  her- 
self for  sleep.  "  0  Gtod !  protect,  and  bless, 


108  THE   CANTERBURY  BLLLS. 

and  keep  all  my  little  ones  safely,"  she  ex- 
claimed, throwing  herself  upon  her  knees 
and  weeping  violently,  after  a  long  pause, 
during  which  the  workings  of  her  agitated 
countenance  showed  how  many  apprehen- 
sions and  anticipations  of  evil  were  conjured 
up  before  her  anxious  mind;  and,  weeping 
still,  she  returned,  and  laid  herself  down  to 
pass  a  long  wearisome  night,  struggling  with 
hope  and  fear,  duty  and  inclination;  for 
although  she  was  learning  to  look  unto  the 
Lord  for  help  in  time  of  trouble,  she  was 
wholly  ignorant  of  the  great  secret  of  leav- 
ing with  him  the  burdens  which  she  brought, 
and  waiting  in  quiet  faith  and  patience  for 
him  to  fulfill  his  promise :  "  Cast  thy  bur- 
den upon  the  Lord  and  he  shall  sustain  thee.n 
Nevertheless,  He,  who  has  also  promised 
not  to  "break  the  bruised  reed,  or  quench 
the  smoking  flax,"  listened  with  forbearing 
tenderness  to  these  first  faint  utterances  of 
her  dawning  faith  and  received  into  his 
faithful  keeping  the  little  flock  so  doubtfully 
intrusted  to  his  care. 

Calmlv  and  steadily   Mrs.   Lee  had  em- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  109 

ployed  herself  with  her  arrangements,  with- 
out a  wavering  thought,  after  having  once 
decided  that  duty  to  her  sick  child,  de- 
manded this  sacrifice  of  her  own  feelings 
in  leaving  the  other  two,  who  were  not  less 
dear  to  her  heart. 

March  had  set  in  mildly,  and  Alice  had 
felt  the  good  effects  of  the  balmy  air.  But 
the  unavoidable  excitement  of  this  last  day 
had  brought  back,  to-night,  the  flush  of 
fever  to  her  cheek,  and  held  her  eyes  wak- 
ing till  a  late  hour.  The  door  leading  into 
Annie  and  Tommy's  little  room  was  open, 
and  they  had  apparently  both  been  long 
sound  asleep.  But  still  her  mother  sat  by 
her  bedside,  softly  stroking  her  throbbing 
temples,  and  talking  gently,  or  singing 
hymns  to  soothe  her  agitated  nerves. 

"If  I  do  ever  get  well,  dear  mother !" 
said  Alice  at  length,  "how  shall  I  repay 
you,  or  ever  thank  you  half  enough  for  all 
these  tedious  hours  of  the  night  which  you 
have  spent  by  my  sick-bed.  You  do  not 
know  how  strong  your  love  makes  these 
verses  seem,  '  When  my  father  and  my  mo- 
10 


110  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

ther  forsake  me,  then  the  Lord  will  take 
me  up;'  and:  'Yea,  they  may  forget,  yet 
will  not  /  forget  thee.'  0  mother !  how  in- 
exhaustible that  love  must  be  I" 

" '  It  passes  all  understanding,7  does  it 
not,  my  daughter  ?" 

"  Indeed  it  does.  I  love  sometimes  to  lie 
perfectly  still,  and  just  try  to  think  of  some- 
thing with  which  to  compare  it,  but  I'm  lost  in 
its  hight  and  depth  and  length  and  breadth." 
As  she  said  this,  she  closed  her  eyes  and 
lay  as  if  in  deep  thought,  and  after  a  while 
her  mother,  finding  that  she  had  fallen 
asleep  in  this  position,  rose,  and  having  un- 
dressed, took  her-  little  Bible  and  read  a  few 
verses  upon  which  she  pondered  carefully, 
then  humbly  kneeling  before  her  Heavenly 
Father,  prayed  long  and  fervently — making 
mention  of  his  goodness  and  mercy,  confess- 
ing her  sin  and  weakness,  and  her  rebellion 
in  times  past,  when  in  order  to  make  her 
meet  for  his  glorious  kingdom,  he  had  seen 
fit  to  employ  upon  her  hard  heart  the  sharp 
tool  of  suffering,  she  asked  for  grace  now 
to  trust  herself  and  children  wholly  in  his 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  Ill 

hands,  and  in  every  trial  to  be  taught  to 
to  say  :  "  Not  my  will,  but  thine  be  done." 
When  she  had  finished  praying  for  herself 
and  for  the  world  at  large,  she  went,  as  she 
was  accustomed  every  night,  to  offer  at  the 
pillow  of  each  sleeping  child  petitions  for 
especial  blessings  and  mercies  for  them,  ac- 
cording to  their  several  necessities. 

Annie  was  lying  still  awake,  and  waiting, 
with  a  full  heart,  for  her  mother  to  come 
to  her  bedside,  for  she  had  discovered 
this  to  be  her  habit  some  weeks  before,  and 
had  felt  so  deeply  impressed  by  this  great 
anxiety  for  her  spiritual  welfare,  that  she 
had  herself  awakened  to  a  sense  of  the 
value  of  her  immortal  soul,  and  the  com- 
parative unimportance  of  every  other  con- 
cern in  life.  Day  after  day  her  prayers  as- 
cended with  increasing  earnestness,  and  day 
by  day  she  felt  more  deeply  her  own  de- 
pravity, and  need  of  a  Saviour's  reconciling 
blood.  Still  there  came  no  sweet  sense  of 
pardon ;  her  heart  was  troubled  and  her 
mind  clouded  by  a  consciousness  of  guilt 
and  a  fear  of  God's  anger.  Yet  she  could 


112  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

not  at  first  find  courage  to  open  her  heart 
upon  this  subject,  even  to  that  tender  mother 
to  whom  she  confided  all  else  so  entirely  ;  but 
had  tried,  as  far  as  she  could,  to  conceal 
from  every  one  her  depression  of  spirits,  and 
when  this  was  observed,  it  had  always  been 
attributed  to  anxiety  on  account  of  Alice,  to 
whom  she  was  devotedly  attached.  But  to- 
night she  felt  that  she  could  no  longer  sus- 
tain alone  the  heavy  burden  which  weighed 
her  spirit  down,  and  as  she  listened  to  her 
mother's  whispered  prayer  for  her,  she  sobbed 
aloud,  and  rising,  threw  her  arms  around  her 
neck,  saying: 

"  Dear,  dear  mother !  how  I  wish  that  God 
would  hear  your  prayers  and  make  me  a 
child  of  grace ;  but  it  seems  hardly  worth 
while  for  me  to  pray ;  my  heart  grows  more 
hardened  and  sinful  every  day,  and  I  am  so 
full  of  evil  passions  and  unholy  thoughts. 
Do  tell  me  what  I  must  do,  for  I  have  prayed 
and  prayed,  but  I  fear  God  does  not  hear 
me." 

Mrs.  Lee  was  much  touched,  and  pressed 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  113 

her  weeping  child  to  her  heart,  saying  slow- 
ly and  solemnly : 

"  Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  thou 
shalt  be  saved !  In  whose  name,  my  child, 
have  those  prayers  been  offered  ?  and  whose 
merits  have  you  pleaded  to  procure  the  favor 
of  your  offended  but  merciful  Father  in 
Heaven?  Are  you  looking  to  yourself  or 
Jesus  for  salvation  ?" 

"  I  try,  mother,  to  look  only  to  Jesus,  but 
I  can  not  love  and  trust  him.  I  can  not 
cease  sinning  against  him,  and  I  am  afraid 
he  has  given  me  up,  and  will  not  save  me." 

"  If  you  do  not  love  and  trust  him,  Annie, 
must  it  not  be  because  you  do  not  believe  ail- 
that  the  Bible  tells  you  of  his  love  to  you  f 
Can  you  believe  that  he  so  loved  you  as  to 
give  his  own  life  to  save  you  from  the  pun- 
ishment which  your  sins  have  deserved,  and 
yet  withhold  from  him  that  confiding  love 
which  he  claims  from  you  in  return  ?" 

"  I  know,  mother,  that  he  died  for  sinners, 

and  that  if  we  repent  and  believe,  he  will 

save  us — that  is  what  I  have  been  trying  to 

do,   but  it  must  be  that  I  do  not  repent 

10* 


114  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

enough;  for  I  can  not  feel  that  God  has 
pardoned  me,  and  I  believe  I  am  more 
wicked  than  I  ever  was  before,  although  I 
am  sure  that  I  want  to  do  right,  and  I  con- 
stantly pray  to  be  made  pure  and  holy." 

"  The  Bible,  my  dear,  tells  us  of  two  classes, 
the  self-righteous,  who  think  they  need  no 
repentance  and  desire  no  Saviour,  and  the 
lost,  whom  Jesus  came  to  seek  and  to  save — 
but  it  does  not  speak  of  any  poor  lost  ones 
who  are  trying  to  come  to  Jesus,  and  who 
desire  his  salvation,  but  can  not  obtain  it. 
If  you  really  feel  yourself  lost,  remember 
that  he  is  seeking  to  save  you,  not  because 
there  is  any  thing  in  you  worthy  of  the  love 
which  moves  him  to  deal  so  graciously  with 
you,  but  because  that  love  is  so  free,  full, 
and  infinitely  great,  that  it  reaches  even  one 
so  hardened,  thankless,  and  sinful  as  your- 
self, and  he  really  desires  to  bestow  upon 
you  the  blessings  of  pardon  and  peace  with 
the  gift  of  eternal  life,  far  more  than  you 
have  ever  craved  them  for  yourself.  Do  you 
suppose,  then,  that  when  you  come  to  him 
in  prayer,  as  he  has  told  you  to  do,  and  ask 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  115 

him  to  wasli  you  with  his  blood,  and  cleanse 
you.  from  those  sins  which  make  you  so  im- 
happy  and  separate  you  from  your  Heavenly 
Father,  whom  you  desire  to  love  and  serve, 
that  he  will  turn  away  from  you  because 
you  do  not  repent  enough  f  Is  it  not  God's 
own  Spirit  which  is  now  convincing  you  of 
sin,  and  is  not  this  Spirit  the  gift  which 
Jesus  died  to  purchase  for  us  ?  and  if  he  has 
already  of  his  grace  and  free  will  bestowed 
thus  much  upon  you,  be  assured  that  he  will 
not  fail  to  add  abundantly  to  what  he  has 
already  done,  if  you  thankfully  receive,  and 
perse veringly  ask  and  believe.  His  blood 
and  his  atonement  you  must  remember,  my 
child,  are  not  purchased  -by  our  repentance ; 
they  are  freely  offered  to  us — we  have  only 
to  wash  and  be  clean.  Without  repentance 
of  course  we  can  feel  no  desire  for  this 
cleansing,  but  as  soon  as  we  have  the  de- 
sire, there  is  the  fountain  open  for  all  sin 
and  uncleanness.  Now,  my  child,  deal  hon- 
estly with  yourself,  search  and  try  your  own 
heart,  and  see  if  you  have  indeed  this  de- 
sire to  be  cleansed  from  all  evil  and  to  lead 


116  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

an  entirely  new  and  holy^ife,  then  you  will 
know  certainly  whether  your  repentance  is 
of  the  right  kind — that  it  is  enough,  I  can  not 
say,  for  like  every  other  fruit  of  the  Spirit, 
it  needs  to  be  increased,  and  like  every  of- 
fering which  we  present  unto  the  Lord,  it 
needs  to  be  purified ;  nevertheless,  persevere 
in  prayer,  and  'He  who  has  begun  a  good 
work  in  your  heart,  will  make  it  perfect  in 
the  end.'  " 

"  Mother,"  answered  Annie,  after  a  silence 
of  some  moments,  "  I  am  very  sure  that  I 
do  desire,  above  every  thing,  to  be  rid  of 
my  sins.  I  can  not  tell  you  how  I  some- 
times loathe  myself  on  account  of  them." 

"  Then,  my  child,  you  have  only  to  believe 
and  to  accept  the  free  gift ;  and  can  you  re- 
fuse the  poor  return  of  your  polluted  heart 
to  Jesus,  who  has  asked  for  it  again  and 
again,  and  is  asking  for  it  now  ?  Are  you 
willing  to  make  the  surrender,  and  renounc- 
ing yourself  and  every  other  dependence,  to 
become  wholly  his  for  time  and  for  eter- 
nity ?" 

"0  mother !  most  gladly  and  thankfully, 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  117 

if  lie  will  really  accept  me;  for  I  long  to 
feel  that  he  is  my  Saviour,  and  I  am  weary 
of  my  sins,  weary  of  my  strivings,  and  weary 
of  myself? 

"  Go  then,  my  dear  child,  on  the  faith  of 
his  own  words,  *  Him  that  cometh  unto  me, 
I  will  in  no  wise  cast  out :'  tell  him  all  this  ; 
and  hold  nothing  back,  but  offer  all — body, 
soul,  and  spirit,  and  see  if  he  will  not  accept 
the  gift,  unworthy  as  it  is." 

Annie  knelt,  and  in  the  solemn  stillness 
of  that  midnight  hour,  made  an  entire  con- 
secration of  herself  to  God.  As  she  prayed, 
a  deep  peace,  such  as  she  had  never  known 
before,  stole  upon  her  heart,  and  she  felt  that 
God  was  affixing  his  seal  to  the  bond  which 
made  her  his  forever.  Her  mother's  silent 
prayer  ascended  for  her,  at  the  same  time, 
mingled  with  devout  thanksgiving,  as  she 
acknowledged  that  God  had  in  this  case 
already  fulfilled  to  her  his  promise :  "  While 
they  are  yet  speaking,  I  will  hear."  And 
when  at  length  both  had  laid  them  down 
to  rest,  sweet,  quiet,  and  refreshing  sleep 
soon  closed  their  eyes. 


118  THE  CANTEKBUBY  BELLS. 

Annie  was  indeed,  for  a  few  moments, 
disquieted,  as  she  thought  of  the  approach- 
ing separation  from  her  mother,  with  fears 
lest,  when  left  to  herself,  she  should  not 
always  be  able  to  see  things  in  the  same 
clear  light  in  which  they  had  just  been  pre- 
sented to  her. 

"  "What  should  I  do  if  I  am  overcome  by 
the  temptation  to  doubt  God  again,  or  how 
shall  I  know  just  what  I  ought  to  do  when 
I  am  trying  to  choose  the  right  ?"  she  asked 
herself  tremblingly.  But  the  question  seemed 
to  be  answered  by  a  voice  softly  whispering 
within : 

"  Jesus,  my  strength,  my  hope, 

On  thee  I  cast  my  care, 
With  humble  confidence  look  up, 

And  know  thou  hearest  my  prayer; 
Give  me  on  thee  to  wait, 

Till  I  can  all  things  do ; 
On  thee,  Almighty  to  create, 

Almighty  to  renew." 


CHAPTEE    VI. 

THE  weather  was  as  fine  next  morning  as 
could  have  been  desired  for  the  travellers,  and 
great  was  the  excitement  among  the  child- 
dren  when  the  bustle  commenced  of  bring, 
ing  down  the  baggage.  Charlie  found  full 
scope  for  the  exercise  of  his  energies  in 
moving  carpet-bags  and  bandboxes,  and 
in  running  on  messages  for  the  servants. 
Clara  stepped  out  earlv  into  the  conserva- 
tory and  cut  two  bouquets,  which  were 
placed  on  the  breakfast-table,  at  her  mo- 
ther's and  Alice's  place,  and  one  beautiful 
white  rose-bud  was  reserved  for  her  Aunt 
Annie.  With  forced  cheerfulness  the  family 
seated  themselves  at  the  richly  laden  board, 
seeming  determined  to  drown  in  bright  an- 
ticipations and  kind  attentions  to  each  other 
the  saddening  reflection  that  they  were  tak- 
ing the  last  meal  which  they  should  enjoy 
together  for  many  months.  Alice  was  not 


120  THE  CANTERBUEY  BELLS. 

often  well  enough  to  be  down  so  early,  but 
this  morning  she  felt  stronger,  and  had  made 
an  unusual  effort.  "With  fond  admiration, 
every  eye  followed  her  as  she  moved  grace- 
fully round,  bidding  good  morning,  and 
adding  some  little  playful  remark  to  each 
in  her  bright,  winning  manner.  And  then 
having  claimed  a  seat  at  her  uncle's  right 
hand,  she  sat  by  him  in  her  neat  travelling 
dress,  with  her  golden  hair  falling  in  light 
ringlets  around  her  head  and  shoulders,  and 
her  dark  blue  eyes,  with  their  peculiarly 
lovely  expression  of  deep,  tranquil  thought- 
fulness  fixed  gravely  upon  him,  as  he  dis- 
cussed some  plan  referring  to  their  future 
route,  or  beaming  with  kindly  light  as  she 
turned  to  caress  one  of  the  little  ones,  who, 
climbing  on  the  back  of  her  chair,  claimed 
a  morning  kiss  before  they  eat  their  break- 
fast. There  was  a  faint  tinge  in  one  small 
spot  on  her  pale  cheeks,  which  deepened  or 
faded  with  her  slightest  motion,  adding  an 
indescribable  charm  to  her  frail,  shadowy 
loveliness.  A  tear  stole  into  her  uncle's  eye, 
as  he  watched  it  coming  and  going,  and 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  121 

thought :  "Even  so  flickering,  so  uncertain 
is  her  own  precious  life.  Let  but  one  rough 
blast  blow  upon  this  sweet  flower,  and  it 
must  perish  forever  from  our  sight."  Alice 
saw  the  tear,  but  was  wholly  unconscious 
of  having  caused  it.  She  thought  he  was 
saddened  as  the  time  drew  nearer  for  him 
to  leave  his  own  little  ones,  and  rose  quickly 
from  the  table,  taking  up  her  flowers,  and 
put  her  arms  caressingly  round  his  neck,  as 
if  to  hold  them  up  before  his  face,  as  she 
said  aloud  playfully : 

"  Uncle,  you  haven't  admired  my  lovely 
flowers  half  enough  !  I'm  afraid  you  are  a 
little  jealous  because  Clara  did  not  gather 
them  for  you;  but  you  shall  smell  them  until 
your  heart  is  softened,  when  you  remember 
how  much  your  poor  little  sick  niece  enjoys 
them." 

And  then  as  she  withdrew  them,  after  hav- 
ing succeeded  in  fascinating  him  into  a  smile, 
she  imprinted  a  fond  kiss  on  his  cheek,  whis- 
pering very  softly  in  his  ear  :  "  Trust  them 
all,  dear  uncle,  in  our  Heavenly  Father's 
hand.  He  will  keep  them  safely  for  you." 
11 


122  THE  CAXTERBUEY  BELLS. 

Mr.  Ludwell  looked  up,  and  was  quite 
overcome  as  he  met  the  sweet  look  of  sym- 
pathy in  her  face,  and  gradually  understood 
her  meaning.  Rising  from  the  table,  he  put 
his  arm  round  her  waist  and  led  her  to- 
wards the  fire. 

"  O  my  child !"  he  said,  pressing  her 
closely  to  his  heart,  "  how  you  do  bring  back 
to  me  my  poor  lost  sister — my  sweet,  sweet 
Alice!  But  I  must  not  allow  myself  to 
think  of  her  now.  There,  you  are  beginning 
to  cough — keep  in  this  little  corner  close  to 
the  fire,  and  don't  use  your  voice  any  more 
at  present.  I  must  go  and  see  what  your 
aunt  is  after." 

And  seating  her  in  an  arm-chair,  he  left 
the  room,  but  stood  some  moments  after  he 
had  closed  the  door  behind  him,  listening, 
with  a  sharp  pang,  to  the  hard  cough  which 
seemed  as  if  it  must  rend  in  pieces  her  deli- 
cate frame.  And  when  this  ceased,  she  was 
so  exhausted,  that  her  mother  laid  her  on 
the  sofa,  where,  pale  as  a  marble  statue,  she 
slept  until  the  carriages  were  ready. 

They  were  going  only  as  far  as  General 


THE    CANTERBURY  BELLS.  123 

Lee's  this  first  day,  in  order  to  divide  the 
journey  to  Washington,  where  they  were  to 
spend  a  night,  proceeding  from  thence,  by 
easy  stages,  to  Baltimore,  and  embark  there 
in  a  sailing  packet  for  Liverpool,  and  after- 
wards to  the  south  of  France,  and  Italy,  or 
Switzerland. 

At  last  the  hour  for  parting  came,  and 
amidst  tears  and  sobs,  loving  farewells  were 
uttered.  Then  the  precious  invalids,  sur- 
rounded by  every  comfort  which  the  most 
tender  thoughtfulness  could  provide,  set  off 
on  their  long  and  perilous  journey.  On  the 
steps  of  the  portico,  or  behind  the  stone  col- 
umns, crowded  servants  and  children,  to 
catch  the  last  glimpse  of  the  two  carriages, 
as  they  drove  through  the  long  winding 
avenue  of  elms.  Clara  was  still  weeping 
bitterly,  but  already  the  tears  were  almost 
dry  upon  the  cheeks  of  the  younger  child- 
ren. Frank  having  a  short  holiday  at  this 
time,  had  gained  his  father's  consent  to  ac- 
company him  to  Washington,  to  escort  his 
cousins  who  were  to  come  in  the  carriage 
as  it  returned,  after  having  deposited  the  tra- 


12-i  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

vellers  in  Baltimore.  Mounted  on  his  sleek 
little  pony,  he  galloped  off,  turning  occa- 
sionally to  remind  his  sisters  and  brothers 
that  it  would  be  only  a  short  time  before 
he  returned  with  their  cousins.  Annie  Lee 
was  at  her  mother's  window,  supporting 
with  her  arm  her  lovely  little  blue-eyed 
brother,  who  was  standing  on  the  deep  old 
fashioned  window-seat,  to  get  a  good  view. 
It  had  required  her  utmost  self-command  to 
suppress  her  feelings  whilst  bidding  adieu 
to  her  beloved  sister,  whom  her  mother  had 
cautioned  her  not  to  agitate.  ISfow,  as  she 
leaned  her  head  on  Tommy's  shoulder, 
floods  of  tears  came  to  relieve  her  aching 
heart.  The  little  fellow  regarded  her  for 
a  while  with  the  deepest  concern,  stroking 
and  kissing  her  face  by  turns.  At  last  he 
whispered  softly  : 

"  Sister  Annie,  don't  twy  so,  please !  I 
am  afwaid  you'll  make  Jesus  andwy  with 
you.  Mother  said  it  was  his  will  for  sister 
Allie  to  be  sit  and  do  away  from  us,  and 
that  we  must  twy  to  want  his  will  to  be 
done,  if  we  want  to  please  him." 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  125 

"  Thank  you,  sweet  little  brother,  for  put- 
ting me  in  mind.  I'll  try  to  behave  better ; 
but  I'm  sure  Jesus  is  sorry  for  me,  too,  and 
if  he  was  here,  he  would  weep  with  me,  and 
comfort  me,  as  he  did  Mary  and  Martha," 
answered  Annie,  forcing  back  her  tears,  and 
returning  her  little  brother's  endearments. 

"But,  sister,"  said  the  child  again,  look- 
ing up  in  her  face,  thoughtfully,  "an't  it 
vewy  stwange  that  Jesus  makes  people 
sorwy  when  he  don't  like  to?  I  should 
think  he  wouldn't  do  so." 

"•Tommy,  darling,  you  mustn't  forget 
that  mother  said  it  was  for  our  good ;  that 
just  like  the  doctor  has  to  give  physic  to 
dear  sister  Allie  to  make  her  body  well, 
Jesus  sends  us  trials  to  cure  our  souls  of 
sin ;  that  he  is  a  wise  physician,  and  knows 
just  what  every  body  needs ;  and  as  he 
wants  us  all  to  go  to  heaven,  and  is  very 
good  and  loving,  he  does  what  is  really 
best  for  us,  though  that  often  makes  us  suffer 
at  the  time,  and  though  he  does  not  take 
pleasure  in  giving  us  pain.  Now  you  don't 
think  it  '  stwange,'  do  you  ?" 
11* 


126  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  No ;  I  thint  thafs  just  wight,  betause 
we  never,  never  tould  do  to  heaven  if  he 
didn't  turn  our  souls  and  mate  us  dood." 

This  little  talk  with  Tommy  had  quite 
calmed  Annie,  and  now  she  turned  her 
thoughts  entirely  to  him.  Trying  to  amuse 
him  so  that  he  would  not  feel  lonesome,  she 
took  out  his  blocks  and  helped  him  to  build 
houses,  and  then  to  float  little  paper-boats 
in  the  basin  of  water,  until,  tired  of  play,  he 
asked  her  to  tell  him  a  good  long  pretty 
story  while  she  sewed;  and  while  she  was 
doing  this,  he  dropped  asleep  in  his  little 
arm-chair,  with  his  h'ead  lying  in  her  lap. 
She  then  took  him  up  tenderly  and  laid  him 
on  his  bed. 

"He  will  be  just  like  my  own  child  now, 
and  will  love  me  so  dearly.  And  oh !  how 
.careful  I  shall  be  of  him  to  keep  him  from 
being  sick  or  from  missing  dear  mother  in 
any  way,"  she  thought,  as  she  smoothed 
down  his  short  frock  and  arranged  his  pil- 
low, with  a  heart  full  of  the  fondest  affection. 
Then,  as  she  was  about  to  leave  him  and 
take  up  her  work  again,  she  turned  once 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  127 

more,  drawn  by  an  irresistible  impulse,  and 
kissed  repeatedly  his  white  dimpled  shoul- 
ders and  coral  lips,  until  he  turned,  though 
unconsciously,  from  her,  with  a  sweet  smile 
which  put  in  play  the  dimples  in  his  cheek, 
and  made  it  doubly  hard  to  tear  herself 
away. 

Meanwhile  some  of  Mrs.  Banks's  young 
charge  down-stairs  were  growing  rather  un- 
manageable. As  soon  as  the  first  burst  of 
sorrow  was  over,  even  before  their  tears 
were  well  dried  on  their  cheeks,  the  spirit  of 
mischief  had  revived,  and  they  began  looking 
round  for  some  unusual  mode  of  amusement, 
which  would  at  the  same  time  have  the 
charm  of  novelty,  and  indicate  their  freedom 
from  restraint  and  authority.  George,  seeing 
Uncle  Lemuel,  the  dignified,  pompous  old 
gardener,  very  busy  moving  some  of  his 
large  green-house  plants  with  the  assistance 
of  Milo,  seized  the  end  of  the  garden-hose, 
and  mounting  a  hogshead,  surprised  him  with 
a  sudden  and  violent  shower  upon  himself 
and  his  assistant.  Setting  the  tree  down 
quick1  y,  Uncle  Lemuel  started  back  to  avoid 


128  THE   CANTERBUKY  BELLS. 

the  wetting,  which  for  a  moment  he  supposed 
accidental ;  but  George,  enjoying  highly  his 
discomfiture,  turned  the  water  again  upon 
him,  and  wherever  he  moved  the  stream  pur- 
sued him.  Highly  indignant,  at  length  the 
old  man  drew  himself  up  to  his  full  height, 
which  was  not  inconsiderable,  presenting 
quite  an  imposing  figure,  dressed  in  his 
favorite  holiday  suit,  a  pair  of  "  ol  massa's  " 
shorts  and  tight  long  stockings,  which  he 
had  put  on,  as  he  said,  "  in  honor  of  seeing 
mas'  Edward  and  Miss  Emma  sit  out  on  dere 
gret  journey."  So  he  stood  erect  to  receive 
another  shower,  eyeing  George  with  a  look 
which  might  have  annihilated  a  less  hardy 
subject,  saying  at  the  same  time,  in  the  tone 
of  a  martyr : 

"  Go  on,  my  young  massa ;  play  out  your 
mischif,  pon  an  ol  servant  what  never 
done  you  no  harm ;  but  worked  for  you, 
and  them  ware  before  yer,  too,  night  and 
day,  in  cole  an'  hot,  wet  an'  dry.  But  I 
jes  wish  mas'  Edward  war  back  to  see  yer 
at  it.  Never  mine,  young  massa,  yer  day 
got  to  come  yit.  You  got  to  grow  ol  and 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  129 

stiff,  and  yer  heare  to  whiten  ;  and  de  time's 
comin',  too,  for  yer  to  lie  down  in  yer  grave. 
Den,  I  boun',  de  worms  gwine  to  show  yer 
how  much  dey  respecs  yer  body  'case  it 
'  white  P  Dere's  one  to  show  yer,  too,  mas' 
George,  dat  white  people's  got  a  master  well 
as  black.  And  what  yer  gwine  to  do,  I'd 
like  to  know,  when  dat  time  come  ?" 

George's  hand  slackened  now  through 
sheer  merriment,  and  he  threw  himself  back 
to  laugh  at  Uncle  Lemuel's  tirade,  when, 
the  old  man,  taking  advantage  of  his  being 
off  his  guard,  sprung  forward  in  an  instant, 
and  dragging  him  down  from  his  elevation, 
carried  him  off  to  Mrs.  Banks,  with  com 
plaints  of  his  ill-treatment.  Clara  had  wit- 
nessed the  proceeding  from  the  window 
above,  and  could  not  help  laughing  to  see 
Uncle  Lemuel's  pomposity  for  once  taken 
down ;  and  as  he  was  by  no  means  a  favor- 
ite with  his  fellow-servants,  they  too  enjoyed 
the  scene,  and  tittered  audibly  as  he  passed 
them  on  his  way  to  Mrs.  Banks,  dripping 
like  any  water-dog,  and  with  George  submit- 


130  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

ting  to  be   led   by    the   hand,  because   his 
laughter  made  him  too  weak  to  resist. 

U0  fie!  fie!  George;  I  did  not  think 
ye'd  hev  been  so  little  of  a  gentleman," 
said  Mrs.  Banks  reproachfully. 

"  Why,  Mrs.  Banks,  I  was  only  ducking 
him  ;  he  believes  in  washing,  and's  very  fond 
of  parading  himself  before  folks,  so  I  thought 
I'd  just  take  him  down  a  little,"  replied 
George,  with  a  right  saucy  laugh. 

"Now,  I  spose,  mas'  George,  yer  tink 
yer've  improved  yer  conduc  by  talkin'  so. 
0  boy  !  I  tell  yer,  yer's  got  to  learn." 

"  There,  Lemuel,  you  had  better  go  now 
quickly  and  dry  yourself.  I  am  sorry 
Mister  George  should  hev  treated  you  so, 
and  I  dare  say  he's  sorry  by  this  time  him- 
self, or  at  any  rate  will  be  by  and  by,"  said 
Mrs.  Banks. 

"  Now,  Mister  George,"  she  added,  turn- 
ing to  George,  after  Uncle  Lemuel  had  re- 
tired from  the  scene,  "you  had  better  stay 
here  in  the  house  with  me  for  a  little 
while,  for  you  Lev  done  very  wrong  to 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  131 

A  faithful  old  servant  of  your  father's 
so  -unkindly.  I  did  not  expect  it  from  you, 
and  I  think  you  did  not  know  how  much 
harm  you  might  hev  done.  It's  no  trifle, 
I  can  tell  you,  for  such  an  old  man  to  be 
wet  to  the  skin  so,  while  heated  with  his 
work,  too.  If  he  should  be  very  sick  from 
it,  you  would  not  enjoy  thinking  of  your  fun 
much,  I'm  sure." 

"  He's  not  so  easy  to  make  sick,  Mrs. 
Banks ;  he's  too  tough  for  that  /"  answered 
George,  beginning  to  look  sheepish,  and 
whittling  a  piece  of  wood. 

"Mrs.  Banks !  I'se  brought  mas7  Henry 
to  you,  ma'am,  to  show  what  he  been  doin' 
in  his  ma's  room.  Did  you  ever  see  sich  a 
a  thing  as  this  ma'am  ?"  broke  in  Marion  at 
this  moment,  as  she  entered,  bringing  in  her 
hand  the  fragments  of  a  large  and  beautiful 
vase,  and  with  a  countenance  expressing  the 
greatest  vexation. 

"  Dear  me !  how  did  that  happen,  Mar- 
ion ?"  asked  Mrs.  Banks,  despairingly. 

"Jus'  by  mas'  Henry's  mischief,  ma'am," 
replied  the  angry  maid:  I  was  cleanin'  up 


132  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

missus'  room  thoroughly,  as  you  told  me,  an' 
while  I  was  a  sweepin'  down  cobwebs  from 
the  ceilin7  and  the  walls,  mas'  Henry  stept 
up  behind  me  and  knockt  the  brush  clear 
out  of  my  hand,  so  it  fell  right  accrost  de 
mantel-piece  an'  throwed  dis  off.  I  does 
wisht  master  and  missus  never  had  gone 
away  from  dis  house,  or  dey'd  come  straight 
back  agin.  Little  dey'd  see  of  tother  side  de 
worl,  ef  I  could  a  kept  'em  here,  /  know  /" 

"  Mister  Henry  I  Mister  Henry !  what's  to 
be  done  ?  Your  mother  valued  that  pretty 
vase  for  some  especial  reasons ;  and  only  to 
think  of  your  having  broken  it  before  she'd 
been  gone  a  good  hour  from  the  house.  I 
don't  know  what  kind  of  a  letter  I  must 
write  her,  nor  how  long  I  shall  be  able  to 
stay  in  such  a  mischievous  house,  I  am  sure ! 
You  must  stay  here  now  along  with  George 
until  you  can  behave  better,"  said  poor,  dis- 
comforted Mrs.  Banks. 

After  a  little  while  Susy  and  Alice  came 
in,  looking  tired  and  restless. 

"Mrs.  Banks,  how  far  has  mother  got  bj 
this  time?"  they  asked. 


THE   CANTEEBUEY  BELLS.  133 

"  It's  only  a  bit  after  ten,  my  dears,  and 
they  travel  slowly ;  so  I  expect  she  won't 
get  to  your  grandpa's  for  an  hour  yet." 

"  0  dear  !  and  it  will  be  so  long  before  she 
comes  back  again !  I'm  so  tired  of  being  with- 
out her  already,"  said  Alice. 

"So  am  I,"  said  Susy;  "nothing  seems 
about  the  place  like  it  used  to." 

"  I  am  very  sorry  for  you,  me  dear  child- 
ren ;  but  you  must  try  to  cheer  up  and  to  be 
useful ;  thafs  the  way  to  make  time  fly.  Do 
you  remember  what  the  little  hymn  says  ? 
*  Satan  finds  some  mischief  still  for  idle  hands 
to  do.'  You  had  better  come  help  me  to 
work,  for  I've  got  a  great  deal  to  do,  putting 
away  the  nice  things  that  you  might  break 
or  spoil  in  your  play,  and  by  and  by,  your 
things  must  be  moved  out  of  the  nursery 
into  the  great  octagon  parlor,  where  you 
are  going  to  sleep  now,  right  next  to  me ; 
then  Cousin  Annie  and  all  will  be  close 
together." 

"In    the    octagon    parlor,    Mrs.    Banks! 
Why,  how  can  we  sleep  there?" 
12 


184  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  And  why  not,  children,  if  jour  beds  are 
made  there  for  you,  j  tist  as  they  are  in  the 
nursery  ?" 

"  Why,  Mrs.  Banks !  don't  you  know  it's 
haunted?" 

"  Haunted  by  what,  I  should  like  to 
know?" 

"  By  Aunt  Alice's  ghost  I  Mammy  and 
all  the  servants  say  that  she  comes  in  the 
night,  and  plays  on  her  harp  that's  in  that 
room." 

"  0  my  dear  children !  that  is  all  an  idle 
tale  I  You  must  not  let  the  servants  fill 
your  minds  with  such  stuff.  They  are  poor 
ignorant  creatures,  and  don't  know  any 
better.  You  wouldn't  have  any  reason,  I 
can  tell  you  to  be  afraid  of  your  Aunt  Alice 
if  she  could  come  back ;  but  she's  at  rest 
in  heaven,  and  depend  upon  it,  nothing 
in  this  world  would  tempt  her  to  come 
back  here  again.  You  shalt  go  with  me 
into  the  room,  and  I  will  show  you  her  sweet 
picture.  When  you  hear  me  tell  how  sweet 
and  lovely  she  used  to  be,  you  can  not  be 
afraid  any  more.1' 


CHAPTEE    VII. 

TIMIDLY,  still  with  their  curiosity  and  in- 
terest fully  awakened,  the  children  followed 
Mrs.  Banks  into  that  mysterious  apartment, 
which  for  many  years  had  never  been  opened, 
except  at  long  intervals,  to  be  cleaned  and 
aired ;  these  times  being  carefully  chosen  when 
their  father  was  away  from  home.  Near  its 
threshold  they  had  rarely  ventured  ;  and  if  by 
chance  they  found  themselves  approaching  it 
in  their  plays,  they  hastened  frightened  from 
the  spot. 

Mammy  and  another  servant  were  now 
employed  in  fitting  it  up  for  their  use.  There 
was  a  great  deal  of  richly -gilded  and  carved 
furniture  in  the  room,  and  in  the  recess  of 
the  bow-window  stood  the  harp  of  which  they 
had  heard  so  much;  near  it  was  a  small 
music-stand  with  a  piece  of  music  open  upon 
it,  as  if  the  performer  had  just  left  her  place, 
expecting  to  return  in  a  moment  to  her  occu« 


136  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

pation  there.  And  so  it  had  remained  for 
sixteen  years— just  as  when  the  last  notes  of 
the  plaintive  ballad  died  upon  the  lips  of  the 
child-like  bride  when  she  was  leaving  the 
home  where  her  bright  spirit  had  cheered  the 
declining  years  of  her  venerable  parents. 
'With  eyes  riveted  upon  this  instrument,  the 
children  at  first  clung  closely  to  the  side  of 
their  old  friend,  whose  composed  and  quiet 
manner  soon,  however,  somewhat  reassured 
them.  She  advanced  into  the  room  and 
stood  before  a  large  painting  reaching  almost 
to  the  ceiling,  and  filling  up  a  large  portion 
of  the  length  of  the  wall 

It  represented  a  family  scene.  The  father, 
a  middle-aged  man  of  noble  appearance,  seat- 
ed in  a  large  arm-chair  before  a  round  table 
by  the  blazing  fire,  with  books  piled  carelessly 
by  his  elbow,  rested  on  the  table,  as  he  held 
up  his  newspaper  to  the  light.  His  eyes, 
however,  were  evidently  wandering  from  his 
paper  to  the  opposite  part  of  the  room,  where, 
glancing  above  his  spectacles  with  a  look  full 
of  amusement  and  pleasure,  he  watched  the 
movements  of  a  group  who  occupied  the 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  137 

corner  of  a  great  high-backed  sofa.  This 
group  consisted  of  a  lady  simply  yet  elegantly 
dressed,  surrounded  by  her  three  children. 
The  eldest,  a  handsome  youth  of  about  fifteen 
years,  with  a  full  face,  florid  complexion,  and 
an  abundance  of  waving  brown  hair,  was 
resting  on  the  arm  of  the  sofa  and  looking  up 
into  his  mother's  face  with  an  expression  of 
earnest  entreaty,  while  seated  at  her  mother's 
side  was  a  dark-haired  little  girl  of  twelve, 
dressed  in  a  white  slip  with  a  broad  blue  sash 
and  sleeve-ribbons  ;  her  face  turned  towards 
her  brother's,  and  with  one  hand  resting  on 
her  mother's  shoulder,  and  the  other  extend- 
ed, as  if  for  something  the  mother  held  be- 
hind her,  who,  with  a  mild  and  gentle  coun- 
tenance, seemed  to  be  smilingly  refusing  the 
request  which  her  two  children  were  pressing 
so  eagerly. 

A  little  fairy-like  creature,  with  laughing 
blue  eyes,  golden  curls,  a  forehead  smooth 
and  pure  as  the  whitest  marble,  fall  red  lips, 
just  parted  enough  to  show  two  little  pearly 
white  teeth,  and  dimpled  cheeks,  glowing 
with  the  bright  flush  of  youth  and  health, 
12* 


138  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

stood  in  front  of  the  rest,  with  her  hands  glee* 
fully  clasped  together  as  she  laughed  merrily 
at  the  jest  lurking  in  her  mother's  quiet  yet 
mischievous  smile.  She  seemed  several  years 
younger  than  her  sister,  though  they  were 
dressed  exactly  alike. 

"  Oh  !  what  a  beautiful  picture ;  what  sweet 
little  girls!  and  such  a  pretty  boy!  just  as 
old  as  brother  Frank,  I  do  believe  !  and  he's 
got  eyes  almost  exactly  like  his  too !  Mrs. 
Banks,  please  tell  us  who  they  are  ?" 

"  Did  you  ever  see  any  body  like  that  little 
girl  with  the  dark  hair?" 

"  Yes,  I  have.  It's  very  much  like  Cousin 
Annie,  but  a  good  deal  prettier,"  said  George. 

"Perhaps,  Georgie,  that's  because  it's  a 
painting;  it  is  Cousin  Annie's  mother,  how- 
ever." 

"Is  that  Aunt  Annie?  Doesn't  it  seem* 
funny  that  she  was  a  little  girl  like  that,  once 
on  a  time  ?  I  must  go  and  call  Cousin  Annie 
and  Clara  down  to  see  it,"  said  Susy. 

"  Here's  sister,  now,  coming  by  herself  1" 
said  little  Alice,  as  Clara  presented  herself  at 
the  open  door,  plainly  questioning  with  her 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  139 

face  the  meaning  of  this  assemblage  in  the 
octagon  parlor.  She  was  quickly  informed 
of  the  new  plan,  and  had  her  attention  drawn 
to  the  picture. 

"  I  suppose  that  must  be  Aunt  Annie,  when 
she  was  a  little  girl,  and  grandpa  and  grand- 
ma Ludwell,  with  poor  Aunt  Alice ;  and  dear 
papa  I'd  know  any  where,"  she  said,  looking 
up  where  the  others  pointed. 

"  How  nice  they  all  look !  I  wish  I  had 
been  alive  then,  and  could  have  known  them !" 
said  Alice. 

"  Known  who,  Alice  ?  You  silly  little 
thing!  How  could  you  have  known  them, 
when  you  warn't  even  born !  Why,  child, 
you  are  hardly  out  of  your  egg-shell  yet !" 
said  Henry,  looking  very  wise  and  patriarchal. 

"  Well,  Henry,  I  only  said  I  wish  I  had 
been  born  then ;  that  an't  any  thing,"  said 
Alice  timidly. 

"Where  was  I,  then,  Mrs.  Banks,  and 
Alice,  and  all  of  us  ?  Was  we  at  grandpa's 
house  with  mamma  ?"  asked  little  Emmy. 

"  No,  my  child,  you  were  not  in  this  world 
at  all." 


140  THE   CAXTERBUEY  BELLS. 

"  Oli !  then  I  must  have  been  in  heaven  1 
wasn't  I?" 

"  Your  heavenly  Father  had  not  made  you 
yet,  so  you  were  no  where." 

"  I  do  not  see  how  that  can  be !  and  I  don't 
know  how  God  can  see  us  and  hear  us  all  the 
time,  and  get  into  places  where  the  windows 
and  doors  are  all  shut,  without  making  a  hole 
or  any  thing,"  said  Susy,  with  a  thoughtful, 
puzzled  look ;  "  but  now,"  she  added,  moving 
towards  the  door,  "I  must  run  and  bring 
Cousin  Annie  and  Tommy  down." 

•  The  noise  she  made  in  opening  and  shut- 
ting the  door  wakened  Tommy  up.  Annie 
quickly  brushed  over  his  curls,  and  they 
went  down  with  Susy  to  join  their  young 
companions. 

"  Oh !  what  a  sweet  wittle  mamma  !"  said 
Tommy,  as  Susy  showed  him  his  mother. 

"Will  she  ever  be  wittle  like  that  again  ?" 

"No,  Tommy!  How  could  she  be  ?"  She's 
grown  up  now,  and  people  don't  grow  little 
again,"  said  Susy. 

"  I  believe  I'm  as  silly  as  Alice,"  said 
Clara;  "but  I  can't  help  having  a  kind  of 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  141 

feeling  as  if  I  should  like  so  much  to  have 
known  papa  years  ago,  when  he  was  young. 
I  wonder  what  he  and  aunt  Annie  are  beg- 
ging grandpa  for  in  the  picture  ?  I  think  I 
can  see  now  how  he  thanked  her,  if  she  did 
it  at  last.  I  believe  I  would  do  any  thing  in 
the  world  papa  was  to  ask  me,  just  to  hear 
him  say,  'Thank  you,'  with  his  sweet,  kind 
smile." 

"  "Well,  my  children,  come  to  dinner  now, 
and  I  will  tell  you  while  we  are  at  the 
table  about  this  picture ;  and  afterwards 
we  will  come  back  to  see  something  else 
IVe  got  to  show  you  in  here,"  said  Mrs. 
Banks. 

Dinner  was  much  earlier  than  they  were 
accustomed  to  have  it,  and  the  meal  a  very 
simple  one. 

"  Dear  children,"  said  Mrs.  Banks,  when 
they  were  all  seated,  "don't  you  think  it 
is  very  good  in  our  heavenly  Father  to 
give  us  so  many  blessings?  Look  at  your 
beautiful  home  and  think  that  our  Lord 
Jesus  had  not  where  to  lay  his  head,  and  re- 
member how  many  of  you  there  are  to  love 


142  THE   CANTERBURY   BELLS. 

each  other,  while  but  a  very  few  poor  peo- 
ple cared  any  thing  for  him ;  he  was  often 
very  lonely  and  sad  for  our  sakes,  and 
went  for  days  without  tasting  food  —  fasting 
and  praying  for  us,  while  he  gives  us  every 
day  our  daily  bread.  Now,  won't  you  fold 
your  hands,  and  help  me  to  thank  him  for  his 
great  goodness  ?" 

There  was  a  moment's  pause,  and  some  lit- 
tle hesitation  among  the  children;  but  it 
would  have  been  almost  impossible  to  refuse 
any  thing  asked  so  persuasively,  and  with 
such  a  kind,  affectionate  countenance  "by  the 
friend  who  was  always  doing  something  for 
their  gratification,  so  that  each  of  them  pre- 
sently folded  their  hands  and  looked  down 
while  they  repeated  after  her,  as  she  desired 
them,  the  simple  grace:  "We  thank  thee, 
our  kind  heavenly  Father  for  all  our  mercies, 
for  our  beautiful  home,  dear  parents,  and  bro- 
thers and  sisters  to  love  and  comfort  one  an- 
other ;  and  for  wholesome  food  to  strengthen 
our  bodies.  We  pray  God  to  bless  and  feed 
the  poor,  and  make  us  very  kind  to  those 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  143 

who  are  not  so  well  taken,  care  of  as  we  are., 
for  Jesus'  sake,  Amem." 

Mrs.  Banks  had  Charlie  placed  on  one  side 
of  her,  and  little  Phebe,  who  was  brought  to 
table  for  the  first  time,  on  the  other.  The 
little  lady  was  infinitely  delighted  at  this 
elevation,  and  contributed  not  a  little  to  the 
amusement  and  pleasure  of  her  admiring 
young  relatives,  as  she  made  quizical  faces  at 
mammy,  who  was  stationed  at  the  back  of  her 
high-chair  to  cut  up  her  food,  and  show  her 
how  to  use  her  little  ivory  knife  and  fork 
like  sister  Clara  and  cousin  Annie — dropping 
many  hints  at  the  same  time  about  soiling  the 
spotless  Marseilles  bib  which  was  fastened 
round  her  neck.  By  dint  of  keeping  Charlie 
busy  and  amused,  he  was  prevented  from 
occasioning  as  much  disturbance  as  it  was  his 
wont  to  do. 

He  was  a  chubby-faced,  rosy-cheeked, 
little  fellow,  with  mischief  and  fun  lurking 
in  every  line  of  his  countenance,  and  a  bold, 
defiant  air,  indicating  the  dauntless  spirit 
which  no  threats  or  persuasions  could  ever, 
subdue ;  his  disposition  required  the  firmest 


144  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

and  most  skillful  management,  and  Mrs. 
Banks's  interest  had  already  awakened  for 
him,  in  a  peculiar  degree ;  next  to  the  little 
helpless  Phebe,  she  seemed  to  love  him  more 
than  any  of  her  young  charge,  and  took 
especial  pains  to  divert  and  please  him. 
She  had  more  than  once  predicted  that  he 
would  "make  a  remarkable  man,  one  of 
these  days,  when  he  had  sobered  down  a 
little,  and  sowed  his  wild  oats." 

"  Kemarkable  bad  one  then,  I  boun,' " 
was  mammy's  rejoinder  to  herself,  when  she 
happened,  on  one  occasion,  to  hear  this  pre- 
diction. Emmy  was  according  to  the  nur- 
sery phrase,  "the  very  apple  of  her  eye,'' 
and  her  wrath  was  often  drawn  out  towards 
Charlie,  for  his  merciless  persecutions  of  his 
little  sister,  who  was  the  most  frequent  vic- 
tim of  his  unaccountable  propensity  to  pinch 
and  bite.  Owing  to  his  mother's  ill-health, 
and  his  father's  constant  occupation,  he  had 
been  left  very  much  to  the  care  and  control 
of  the  elder  servants,  who  not  at  all  under- 
standing his  character,  usually  found  him 
intractable  and  rebellious.  They  often  dis- 


THE    CANTERBURY  BELLS.  145 

cussed  his  future  prospects  among  them- 
selves, deciding  that  he  was  a  "  young  tiger 
now,  and  gwine  to  be  somethin'  wuss,  some 
of  these  days."  At  other  times,  they  would 
be  won  to  a  much  more  favorable  judgment 
by  his  irrestible  waggery  or  generous  im- 
pulses. The  good  effects  of  grandpa's  dis- 
cipline had  proved  more  lasting  than  was  at 
first  expected,  and  Mrs.  Banks  was  very 
anxious  to  take  advantage  of  this  favorable 
opportunity  of  making  the  reformation,  if 
possible,  complete.  Accordingly  she  spent  a 
great  deal  of  time  in  trying  to  study  his 
character,  and  gain  his  affections,  patiently 
bearing  many  inconveniences  to  which  he 
subjected  her  by  his  Caliban  tricks. 

"Now  about  the  picture,  Mrs.  Banks,"' 
said  Clara,  "  you  promised  to  tell  why  papa 
is  looking  so  beseechingly  at  grandpa,  you 
know." 

Mrs.  Banks  in  reply,  gave  the  children  the- 

following    recollections    of     their    father's 

family,  and   of  the  scene  which  they  saw 

pictured  upon  the    canvas ;  we    shall  beg 

13 


146  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

however,  to  transcribe  it  without  the  pecu- 
liarities of  her  English  pronunciation. 

"  0  Miss  Clara !  I  remember  that  evening 
very  well.  The  picture,  you  see,  was  paint- 
ed by  a  cousin  of  your  grandfather's,  from 
Old  England :  he  had  lost  his  wife,  to  whom 
he  was  exceedingly  attached,  and  being  very 
unhappy  at  home,  came  over  to  this  country 
just  after  the  Revolution,  to  stay  awhile  with 
your  grandfather,  whom  he  had  known  at 
college,  and  loved  as  a  brother.  I  don't 
think  you  have  ever  heard  your  father  speak 
of  him,  for  he  does  not  like  to  talk  of  those 
bygone  days,  when  Mr.  William  Ludwell  was 
here,  because  of  the  sad,  sad  events  which 
followed.  But  this  Mr.  •  William  Ludwell 
was  a  very  smart  man,  a  poet,  a  musician, 
and  a  great  painter ;  and  one  evening  as  he 
was  sitting  near  the  chimney-corner,  with  his 
head  bowed  down,  thinking  about  something 
very  deep  and  strange,  I  suppose,  as  he  often 
did,  all  of  a  sudden  he  started  up,  and  clap- 
ping your  grandfather  on  the  shoulder, 
exclaimed:  'Now  I  have  got  you  all  just  to 
suit  me,  and  must  take  this  family-group. 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  147 

It  will  make  a  charming  scene  for  your  de- 
scendants ;  nothing  could  be  more  admirable, 
if  you  had  purposely  arranged  yourselves  for 
my  brush.7  Your  grandfather  smiled,  and 
said  he  must  remember  that  the  family  circle 
would  be  incomplete  without  having  himself 
in  too ;  they  bantered  each  other  and  jested 
a  bit  about  it,  but  it  was  at  length  decided 
that  Mr.  Ludwell  should  paint  the  picture, 
and  so  he  took  that  winter  evening  scene, 
which  I  am  going  to  describe  to  you. 

u  Your  grandmother  had  the  sweetest 
voice,  to  my  ear,  that  ever  I  heard,  and  her 
children  used  to  love  to  gather  round  her  to 
hear  her  sing  old  ballads,  which  she  accom- 
panied with  her  lute  —  that  very  old-fashion- 
ed-looking lute  which  is  put  away  now,  on 
the  top-shelf  in  your  father's  cabinet.' 

"  Oh !  I  have  seen  it  there,  and  wondered 
what  kind  of  an  instrument  it  was,"  said 
Clara,  "  but  how  very  different  it  is  from  the 
guitars  we  use  now  ! 

"Why,  but  sister,  it's  a  lute,  not  &  guitar, 
Mrs.  Banks  says,"  said  Henry. 


148  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  And  Mr.  Wisdom,  isn't  a  lute  the  same 
thing  as  a  guitar  ?" 

"  No ;  is  it  Mrs.  Banks  ?" 

"  I  don't  think  Harry,  you'll  find  any 
difference,  except  in  the  name;  it  is  old- 
fashioned  to  call  it  lute,  nowadays,  that's 
all ;  but  the  reason  you  think  it  so  strange- 
lookiDg,  Clara,  is  because  you  have  only  seen 
the  Spanish  guitar  used.  This  is  a  very  soft, 
sweet  instrument,  however,  and  I  think  it's 
a  great  pity  it  should  go  out  of  fashion.  I 
love  it  all  the  better  perhaps,  because  it 
reminds  me  of  the  days  of  my  youth.  It  is 
this  that  your  grandma  is  holding  behind 
her  in  the  picture.  If  you  look  closely,  you 
can  see  the  end  with  the  little  keys  in  it, 
peeping  out  from  under  her  elbow,"  said 
Mrs.  Banks. 

"  Yes,  I  did  see  something  like  that,"  said 
Susy. 

"  She  had  been  playing,"  continued  the 
old  nurse,  "  and  singing  the  ballad  which, 
of  all  others,  her  children  loved  the  most.  It 
was  taken  from  the  Italian  story  of  a  young 
bride  who  in  the  midst  of  the  marriage-feast, 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  149 

went  off  in  play  to  hide  herself,  and  was 
never  found  till  many  years  after,  when  her 
skeleton  fell  from  a  moldering  old  chest, 
which  was  being  removed  from  her  father's 
castle  :  for  the  lid  had  closed  upon  her  with 
a  spring-lock,  and  her  old  father  as  well  as 
the  young  husband,  had  searched  and  search 
ed  for  her  in  vain,  and,  at  length,  gone 
sorrowing  to  their  graves.  Poor  Miss  Annie 
used  always  to  cry  when  her  mother  sang 
that  song,  and  Master  Edward  and  merry 
little  Alice  would  turn  pale  and  look  sad. 
Yet  they  would  all  three  beg  for  it  over  and 
over  again,  but  your  grandmother  thought  it 
was  a  bad  plan  to  sing  it  too  often,  and  some- 
times would  refuse  them  ;  this  time  she  was 
putting  them  off,  laughing  and  pretending  to 
think  they  asked  for  something  else.  When 
you  see  her,  she  had  put  the  lute  behind  her, 
and  would  every  now  and  then,  touch  the 
notes  of  lAuld  lang  SyneJ  which  made 
Master  Edward  quite  impatient.  Little 
Alice,  however,  laughed  aloud,  to  see  her 
mother  so  determined  not  to  understand  her 
sister  and  brother;  and  this  made  your 
13* 


150  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

grandfather  look  up  from  his  paper  to  see 
what  was  the  matter.  It  was  as  pretty  a 
scene  as  any  family  circle  ever  made,  I  am 
sure,  and  I  was  glad  enough  when  your 
cousin  proposed  to  paint  it." 

"Was  it  in  this  very  house,  Mrs.  Banks, 
sure  enough  ?"  said  George. 

"  Yes,  Georgie,  and  in  this  very  dining- 
room,  which  was  your  grandfather's  library. 
There  is  the  same  sofa,  and  may  be  you  did 
not  notice  the  organ  in  the  picture." 

"  No,  /  didn't,"  said  Clara  meditatively. 
"  Mrs.  Banks !  tell  us  how  you  came  to  live 
with  grandpa  so  long,  won't  you  ?"  she  con- 
tinued. 

"I  suppose,  Miss  Clara,  the  reason  I  staid 
so  long  was,  because  I  loved  himself  and  his 
family,  so  dearly.  We  got  acquainted  in  the 
time  of  the  Bevolution.  Your  grandfather's 
and  grandmother's  marriage  would  make 
a  pretty  story  if  it  was  written  out.  They 
had  been  a  long  time  engaged  to  each  other ; 
but  your  grandmother's  father  was  a  Tory, 
and  very  bitter  against  Mr.  Ludwell's  party, 
so  he  would  never  consent  to  the  marriage 


THE   CANTERBURY   BELLS.  151 

of  his  daughter.  He  was  a  harsh,  stern  old 
man  when  his  will  was  disputed,  and  it  dis- 
pleased him.  that  his  child  should  continue  to 
cherish  a  regard  for  any  one  whom  he  dis- 
approved of,  though  she  never  meant  to 
marry  without  his  consent ;  only  she  did  not 
marry  at  all,  which  was  not  his  wish,  as  he 
thought  he  would  like  to  leave  her  with  a 
protector  at  his  death,  her  only  brother  hav- 
ing died  among  the  Indians ;  there  were 
suitors  enough  for  her  hand  too,  to  whom  he 
would  have  made  no  objection.  He  grew 
more  and  more  irrascible  and  harsh  with  her, 
in  proportion  as  he  thought  she  grew  more 
obstinate ;  but  she  was  a  dutiful  and  loving 
daughter  to  him,  notwithstanding,  as  long  as 
he  lived,  never  showing  by  word  or  look, 
ne  pain  she  could  not  help  feeling  at  his 
treatment  of  her.  On  his  death-bed  he  ac- 
knowledged all  this,  and  asked  her  forgive- 
ness, I've  heard.  Then  she  married  the  man 
of  her  choice,  Mr.  Francis  Ludwell,  but  they 
were  neither  of  them  young  by  that  time. 
This  was  just  before  the  battle  of  Lexington, 
and  while  your  grandfather  was  engaged  in 


152  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

the  great  war  that  followed,  your  grand- 
mother found  me  out  in  Kichmond,  and 
came  to  board  with  me,  this  place  not  being 
thought  a  safe  asylum.  You  know  it  was 
taken  possession  of  by  the  British  afterwards. 
She  staid  with  me  two  years,  and  Master 
Edward  was  born  in  my  house.  "When  it 
pleased  God  to  take  away  my  husband, 
your  grandfather  and  herself  would  not  hear 
that  I  should  live  any  where  but  with  them, 
so  I  came  here,  and  we  never  parted  until 
death  came  to  separate  us.  Grod  knows  how 
kind  they  were  to  me  in  my  affliction,  and 
how  dearly  I  loved  them  and  theirs.  They 
were  kind  to  every  one,  and  beloved  by  all 
who  knew  them.  But  we  have  sat  a  long 
time  at  the  dinner-table,  and  you  know 
there's  another  picture  and  story  yet  to 
come." 

"Yes,  that's  about  Aunt  Alice!  an't  it 
Mrs.  Banks?"  asked  Susy. 

Mrs.  Banks  assented,  and  they  all  very 
soon  announced  themselves  ready  to  accom- 
pany her  back  to  the  Haunted  Parlor. 
Leading  them  into  the  dark  recess  where  the 


THE   CANTERBUKY  BELLS.  153 

harp  was  standing,  Mrs.  Banks  opened  the 
glass  doors  and  closed  blinds,  which  led  out 
to  the  green  terrace,  and  pointed  up  to  the 
wall,  where  just  opposite  the  harp,  hung  a 
beautiful  painting  they  had  not  noticed 
before,  in  consequence  of  its  position  and  the 
darkness  of  the  recess.  It  was  the  picture 
of  a  fair  and  graceful  young  creature,  in  her 
bridal  dress.  Orange  flowers  were  mingled 
with  her  light  ringlets,  and  a  soft  lace-veil 
shaded  modestly  one  side  of  her  sweet,  child- 
like face,  which  was  suffused  with  a  deep 
blush,  and  the  laughing  blue  eyes  were  bent 
now  upon  the  ground,  drooping  beneath  the 
long  dark  lashes  which  rested  on  her  cheek. 
For  some  moments  there  was  perfect  silence 
in  that  great  room,  and  the  children  gazed 
with  mingled  admiration  and  awe,  upon  the 
lovely  picture,  which  they  had  heard  often 
described,  and  with  the  touching  story  of 
which  they  were  imperfectly  acquainted. 
Tears  filled  the  eyes  of  good  Mrs.  Banks,  and 
at  length  she  murmured  in  tones  of  mournful 
affection  : 

"  Dear,  dear  child!  Oh !  she  was  indeed  as 


154  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

dear  to  me  as  my  own !  How  tenderly  we 
all  loved  thee,  sweet  one !  And  yet  not  so 
well  as  He  who  lias  taken  thee  to  himself — 
God's  holy  will  be  ever  done  !" 

"And  that  is  Aunt  Alice;  how  very 
beautiful  she  must  have  been!"  whispered 
Clara. 

"Yes,"  said  Annie  in  a  very  low,  soft 
voice,  shading  at  the  same  time  her  eyes 
with  her  hand,  "almost  as  beautiful  as 
my  precious  sister,  and  so  much  like 
her." 

"  Every  one  is  struck  with  the  resem- 
blance, Miss  Annie,"  said  Mrs.  Banks ;  then 
turning  to  the  children,  she  continued  :  "  Do 
tell  me  now,  my  dear  children,  how  you  can 
be  afraid  of  any  thing  as  pure  and  beautiful 
as  that  ?  Does  your  Aunt  Alice  look  as  if 
she  would  have  hurt  you  while  living? 
And  if  not  then,  you  may  be  sure  she  could 
not  now,  when  if  she  were  to  come  to  you  at 
all,  it  must  be  from  heaven  /" 

"Oh!  but  Mrs.  Banks,  her  ghost!  It's 
her  ghost  we  are  afraid  of,"  said  Susy. 

"  I  have  never  felt  so  at  all,"  said  Annie. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  155 

"  Mamma  lias  talked  to  us  a  great  deal  about 
dear  Aunt  Alice,  because  she  wants  us  to 
love  her  memory  ;  but  I  never  saw  her  pic- 
ture before." 

"  What  is  her  ghost,  Susy,  my  child,  but 
her  spirit,  which  is  now  with  God,  and 
would  not  leave  his  presence  for  all  that  the 
world  could  offer  her  ?  It  was  God's  spirit 
talking  with  hers,  which  made  her,  while 
she  was  here,  as  you  see  she  looks,  pure, 
gentle,  and  good,  so  that  no  creature  could 
help  loving  her  dearly;  when  I  have  told 
you  about  her  sweet  young  life  and  its  sad 
ending,  you  will  try,  I  hope,  to  be  like  her, 
and  will  never  again  feel  any  thing  but  love 
for  her  memory,  and  sorrow  for  her  early 
death,"  said  Mrs.  Banks,  seating  herself  upon 
a  low  ottoman,  with  a  crimson  damask 
covering,  while  the  children  gathered  round 
to  hear  her  relation. 

"  Never  was  there,  my  dears,"  she  com- 
menced, "  a  family  who  loved  each  othei 
more  tenderly,  than  that  of  your  grandpa- 
rents ;  it  always  seemed  to  be  the  study  of 
each,  to  make  the  rest  happy — I  don't  know 


156  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

why  it  was,  though,  unless  there  are  some  ol 
his  creatures,  whom  our  heavenly  Father 
marks  from  their  birth  with  his  own  seal, 
and  makes  more  exactly  after  his  own  image, 
that  our  dear  little  Alice  never  seemed,  at 
home  or  abroad,  just  like  any  body  else. 
She  was  the  youngest  in  our  house,  four  or 
five  years  younger  than  Miss  Annie;  her 
parents  were  growing  old  when  she  came  to 
them,  bringing  such  a  light  in  her  sweet  face, 
as  if  angels  had  been  smiling  through  her 
eyes,  and  though  sometimes  her  laugh  would 
ring  merrily  through  the  house,  and  she 
would  trip  lightly  about,  singing  like  any 
bird,  and  as  if  she  had  never  heard  of  sorrow, 
yet  only  let  her  think  that  any  one  was  sick 
or  in  trouble,  that  minute  her  lashes  would 
droop,  and  her  voice  would  soften  until  you 
felt  as  if  she  was  talking  to  you  with  her 
very  heart  itself,  instead  of  her  tongue ;  hei 
words  too,  seemed  so  wise  and  thoughtful, 
they  made  you  forget  she  was  only  a  child. 
Your  grandfather's  cousin  "William,  who  I 
told  you,  staid  for  several  years  here,  and 
painted  the  other  picture,  used  to  say  it 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  •  157 

seemed  to  him.  so  strange  that  it  almost  made 
his  heart  ache  to  hear  her.  I  remember  well 
one  evening,  when  he  looked  at  her  for  a 
long  time,  without  saying  any  thing ;  then 
shook  his  head,  and  muttered  to  himself : 
'  Too  ripe !  she  is  too  ripe  to  be  left  here 
long !'  But  as  for  the  rest  of  us,  I  believe 
nobody  else  ever  thought  of  her  being  taken 
away.  She  was  never  sick,  never  complain- 
ed, or  seemed  to  have  any  troubles  of  her 
own,  but  only  seemed  sent  to  bless  and  com- 
fort others.  Well,  time  wore  on  —  '  Cousin 
William '  went  home  when  she  was  ten  years 
old,  but  he  laughed  and  said :  'Alice,  I  must 
have  you  for  my  child,  one  of  these  days. 
I  am  going  to  send  my  boy  Frank  over 
in  a  few  years,  to  see  if  he  can't 
persuade  you  to  come  and  live  with 
us  in  England  ;  how  long  must  he  wait  ?' 
And  she  laughingly  answered,  '  In  six  years 
I'll  be  sixteen,'  and  cat  a  beautiful  white 
rose-bud  for  him  to  carry  to  her  promised 
bridegroom.  In  two  years  from  that  time, 
dear  Mister  Edward  was  married,  though 
he  was  barely  twenty-one,  and  went  to  li  ye 
14 


158  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

at  Lee  Hall  with  your  grandpa,  who  was  a 
widower,  and  did  not  wish  to  part  with  his 
daughter.  And  it  was  not  eighteen  months 
before  Miss  Annie,  too,  left  us,  and  went 
with  your  uncle  Henry  Lee,  to  live  at  the 
South.  We  found  it  very  hard  to  give  her 
up,  and  there  were  tears  a  plenty  shed  when 
she  bade  good-by.  The  two  sisters  seemed 
as  if  they  never  could  separate,  when  they 
were  clasped  in  .each  other's  arms.  It  was 
a  long  way  off,  and  a  new  country,  to  which 
dear,  sweet  Miss  Annie  was  going,  and  Miss 
Alice  felt  very  anxious  about  her,  and  was 
always  thinking  of  something  to  do  for  her, 
as  well  as  to  cheer  the  old  people  up,  for  it 
seemed  lonely  enough  when  she  was  all  that 
was  left  to  them  ;  but  she  was  always  speak- 
ing so  hopefully  of  the  time  when  her  sister 
would  come  back,  and  planning  changes  and 
improvements  to  surprise  her,  that  it  seemed 
to  cheat  her  parents  into  a  sort  of  forgetful- 
ness  that  her  home  was  here  no  more ;  and 
then,  too,  Miss  Alice  never  once  forgot  any 
thing  that  would  please  them.  Every  season 
she  had  something  to  entertain  them  with- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  159 

flowers  in  the  spring  and  summer,  and  sweet 
music  on  her  harp  as  she  sat  here,  with  the 
moonlight  shining  on  her  through  the  glass 
door.  And  the  winter  evenings  passed 
quickly  away  with  her  reading  and  songs, 
until  before  they  knew  it,  two  years  were 
gone  since  Miss  Annie  went  to  her  new  home, 
and  five  and  half  since  Mr.  "William  Ludwell 
returned  to  England,  when,  one  day  he  ar- 
rived again,  bringing  with  him  his  son 
Francis. 

"I  believe  every  one  had  forgotten  the 
childish  jest  of  Miss  Alice,  about  her  being 
sixteen,  except  myself,  and  I  used  to  wonder 
what  sort  of  a  young  man  this  '  Francis '  was, 
and  had  a  misgiving  that  Mr.  William  Lud- 
well meant  more  seriously  than  he  seemed ; 
but  I  don't  think  dear  Miss  Alice  ever 
thought  of  it,  except  at  first,  when  her  Cou- 
sin William  used  to  write  letters  to  her  fa- 
ther, which  he  said  Alice  must  answer,  and 
he  would  tell  her  what  Francis  was  doing, 
and  send  some  message  from  him,  which 
the  dear  child  at  first  used  to  answer,  but 
after  Miss  Annie  went  away,  and  she  began 


160  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

to  feel,  more  of  a  woman,  she  would  not 
write,  except  a  short  note  sometimes,  to  tell 
how  the  family  were.  But  now,  when  Mr. 
Ludwell  brought  in  a  handsome  and  ele- 
gant young  man  and  introduced  him  as,  '  my 
son  Frank,  whom  I  promised  to  bring  in 
six  years,'  laughing  and  kissing  Alice's 
cheek  as  he  said  it ;  the  sweet  young  crea- 
ture blushed  and  bowed  to  her  young  cousin, 
and  then  ran  frightened  out  of  the  room, 
and  it  was  hard  to  persuade  her  to  go  back ; 
she  would  not,  until  her  mother  came  and 
told  her  that  she  was  behaving  rudely  in  her 
own  house.  Then  she  came  in,  but  looked 
pale  and  was  very  still  all  the  first  day  ;  but 
her  cousin  was  gentle,  modest,  and  retiring 
in  his  manners,  and  kept  out  of  her  way. 
But  I  watched  him,  and  found  that  his  eyes 
followed  her  wherever  she  moved;  and  it 
made  my  heart  bitter  to  sea  this,  for  the  very 
reason  that  I  could  find  no  other  fault  with 
him.  And,  oh !  it  was  hard  not  to  keep  a 
jealous  guard  over  that  precious  jewel. 
After  a  while  Alice  knew  him  better,  and 
would  let  him  accompany  her  harp  with 


THE    CANTERBURY  BELLS.  161 

his  flute,  and  they  read  and  walked  together; 
his  father  seeming  always  so  pleased  to  see 
this,  while  her  parents  were  quite  blind  to 
the  danger  I  was  dreading,  for  they  seemed 
never  to  let  the  thought  of  parting  with  this 
their  last  child,  come  near  to  them.  At  last, 
however,  their  Cousin  William  told  them 
that  his  jest  was  a  sober  fact,  and  that  Frank 
wanted  to  ask  their  Alice's  hand.  It  was 
not  a  pleasant  thing  to  hear,  you  may  sup- 
pose. Still  they  hoped  that  she  would  her- 
self say  no.  But  she  did  not ;  the  sweet 
flower  was  won,  and  on  her  sixteenth  birth- 
day she  was  married  in  this  Very  room  to 
her  cousin  Francis  Ludwell.  It  was  strange 
to  see  how  her  parents  schooled  themselves 
to  bear  it.  Miss  Annie  came  from  her  dis- 
tant home,  bringing  her  first  little  infant 
daughter,  whom  she  named  after  her  sister. 
The  child  was  baptized,  and  her  aunt  stood 
for  her  just  a  week  before  the  marriage. 
And  in  the  pleasure  of  welcoming  home  their 
absent  daughter,  they  tried  to  forget  the  sad 
parting  that  was  coming  with  the  other. 
14* 


162  THE   CAXTEEBURY  BELLS. 

But  as  for  me,  my  heart  sank  within  me  aa 
we  made  preparations  for  the  bridal  feast. 

"The  wax  lights  which  were  burning  all 
over  the  house  seemed  rather  to  make  all 
darkness  around  me ;  and  I  could  not  but 
begrudge  Mr.  William  Ludweli  the  happiness 
he  felt.  It  seemed  to  me  as  if  he  had  not 
dealt  quite  fairly  with  us.  Three  days  they 
staid  at  Belmont  after  the  marriage,  and  then 
they  left  us  for  New- York,  where  they  re- 
mained only  long  enough  for  this  portrait  to 
be  taken.  It  was  done  by  Mr.  Stewart,  who 
was  a  friend  of  Mr.  "William  Ludweli,  and 
was  present  at  the  marriage,  so  he  was  able 
to  give  the  very  expression  of  our  darling 
child's  face  at  that  time. 

"  The  morning  after  the  bridal  party  left, 
your  poor  grandmother  was  wandering 
through  the  house  with  a  desolate,  sad 
heart,  when  she  happened  to  come  in  here 
and  find  Alice's  harp  just  as  she  had  risen 
from  it  the  evening  before,  and  she  said : 
'  Let  it  stay  as  it  is  until  she  comes  again  to 
take  her  own  place  there ;  perhaps  it  will 
help  me  to  forget  that  my  child  is  so  very 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  163 

far  off.'  Miss  Annie  staid  as  long  as  she 
could  with  her  parents  to  comfort  them,  but 
her  own  heart  was  very  sad ;  for  a  shadow 
had  taken  her  sister's  place  at  the  hearth- 
stone—  the  shadow  of  a  coming  sorrow, 
which  we  felt  without  understanding.  None 
of  us  told  the  others  of  our  misgivings  and 
our  troubled  dreams,  yet  every  letter  went 
full  of  fresh  charges  to  be  very  careful,  and 
to  send  tidings  as  soon  as  the  ship  sailed — • 
then  we  heard  that  she  was  off.  Your 
grandmother's  chamber  was  the  one  just 
above  this,  which  dear  Miss  Annie  is  using 
now,  and  one  night  she  was  lying  awake, 
thinking  of  her  child,  and  trembling  at  the 
loud  gust  which  was  blowing,  when  suddenly 
she  heard  the  sound  of  music,  which  seemed 
to  come  from  the  harp  in  the  room  below. 
At  first  it  was  very  faint  and  low,  but  pre- 
sently became  louder,  then  died  almost  away ; 
but  the  next  minute  grew  stronger  again. 
Your  grandfather  tried  to  comfort  her,  say- 
ing it  was  only  the  wind  coming  in  through 
some  open  window.  Taking  a  light  they 
7  mt  to  see,  and  found  that  this  was  so. 


164:  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

Some  one  having  left  the  glass-doors  Tin* 
bolted,  the  high  wind  had  blown  them  open, 
and  as  the  harp  was  just  in  front  of  them,  it 
swept  across  the  strings,  making  a  soft, 
mournful  kind  of  music  as  it  rose  and  fell. 
Nothing  could  remove  the  painful  impression 
which  this  accidental  circumstance  produced 
upon  your  poor  grandmother.  Indeed  we 
all  felt  it  more  or  less,  and  longed  and 
prayed  for  tidings  that  our  darling  was  safely 
landed  on  the  other  side  of  that  great  deep 
she  was  to  cross.  But  week  after  week 
passed  after  we  should  have  heard,  bring- 
ing no  word  of  hope  or  comfort,  till  at  last 
the  ship  was  given  up  for  lost,  and  dreadful 
rumors  came  that  she  had  fallen  into  the 
hands  of  pirates.  Then  some  of  the  servants 
began  to  tell  how  they  had  seen  Miss  Alice 
all  in  white,  glide  through  the  glass  doors 
and  leave  them  open  behind  her  the  night 
their  mistress  heard  the  music ;  but  we  all 
knew  that  it  was  only  one  of  their  idle,  su- 
perstitious tales,  for  every  creature  had  been 
sound  asleep  except  your  poor  grandmother, 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  165 

and  if  they  had  not  been,  we  should  have 
known  that  it  was  impossible. 

"  Mr.  Stewart  had  taken  the  picture  in 
New- York,  and  it  was  not  sent  home  until 
we  had  heard  that  our  darling  was  lost.  The 
sweet  child  had  left  a  little  note  to  come 
with  it — the  first  part  all  so  playful  and  like 
herself;  but  at  the  end  a  few  last  lines  had 
been  added  which  were  blotted  with  several 
larga  tears.  'I  see  by  your  letters,'  they 
said,  'that  you  all  feel  very  anxious  about 
me.  I  trust  it  may  please  our  Heavenly 
Father  to  permit  me  once  more  to  behold 
your  dearly  loved  faces,  but  if  not,  I  wish 
you  to  know  how  tenderly  I  love  you  all, 
and  how  much  I  thank  you  for  your  love  to 
me,  especially  my  dear  parents ;  and  most  of 
all  I  thank  them  for  my  Christian  education. 
All  my  trust  is  in  our  dear  Lord  Jesus, 
and  I  know  that  whatever  he  shall  do  with 
me  will  be  both  good  and  right,  so  I  am 
willing  either  to  live  or  die,  whichever 
pleases  him  best.' 

"  The  last  order  which  your  grandmother 
gave,  was  fry  the  picture  to  be  placed  where 


166  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

it  hangs  to-day.  Then  the  room  was  closed, 
and  only  visited  as  a  place  of  weeping.  Never, 
never,  have  I  seen  such  grief — so  deep  and 
still,  wearing,  day  by  day,  the  life  away. 
Hand  in  hand  your  grandparents  glided  like 
shadows  to  their  graves.  The  work  of  years 
was  done  in  a  few  days.  Mister  Edward 
came  to  live  with  them,  and  Miss  Annie 
staid,  too,  but  nothing  could  keep  them  here 
more  than  a  few  months.  Your  grandfather 
was  the  first,  and  in  three  weeks  his  poor, 
heart-broken  widow  followed  him.  Our 
Heavenly  Father  knows  what  poor  Mister 
Edward  suffered,  and  may  he  show  him 
mercy  for  his  tdo  bitter  grief — poor  fellow,  he 
could  see  no  love  or  pity  in  One  who  so 
afflicts  his  creatures.  With  dear  Miss  Annie 
it  was  different;  God's  spirit  sanctified  her 
sorrow,  and  every  stroke  seemed  to  soften 
her  heart  and  draw  it  nearer  to  himself;  her 
example  and  her  conversation  with  your 
father  I  trust  may  be  blessed ;  he  has  given 
his  consent  that  this  part  of  the  house  should 
be  opened  again.  And  it  was  thought  best 
to  occupy  it  first  while  he  was  gone :  I  have 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  167 

for  my  part,  but  one  wish,  and  that  is,  before 
I  die  to  see  this  once  more  a  Christian  house- 
hold honoring  and  fearing  God,  loving  his 
name,  and  walking  in  his  ways — cherishing 
no  bitter  resentment  against  Him  who  is  in- 
deed the  fountain  of  love  or  refusing  sub- 
mission when  he  but  does  what  He  will  with 
his  own." 

With  subdued  faces  the  children  listened, 
so  absorbed  in  the  thrilling  realities  of  the 
haunted  room  that  they  quite  forgot  their 
former  superstitious  terrors.  When  her  ac- 
count was  finished,  Mrs.  Banks  retired  for 
nearly  an  hour  to  her  own  room.  At  sunset, 
however,  she  came  out  again  and  called  her 
young  friends  to  accompany  her  in  a  walk 
to  see  "Mister  Sun"  put  his  night-cap  on. 
This  summons  soon  gathered  the  little  crowd 
about  her,  the  younger  ones,  understanding 
her  words  literally,  and  being  impatient  to 
see  the  novel  operation,  while  the  elder  ones 
smiled  slightly  with  an  evident  consciousness 
of  superior  wisdom ;  but  were  not  less  curi- 
ous to  see  what  the  old  lady  could  mean. 

She  led  them  to   a  picturesque  spot  on 


168  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

the  western  side  of  the  house  called  "  Mistle* 
toe  hill"  from  the  luxuriant  growth  of  this 
pretty  plant  which  hung  in  rich  drapery 
around  the  branches  of  two  or  three  gnarled 
and  twisted  old  oaks  left  standing  on  the  top 
of  the  hill,  the  sides  of  which  were  embedded 
with  uneven  masses  of  blue  granite  covered 
with  moss  and  lichen.  The  place  com- 
manded a  beautiful  view  of  the  setting  sun, 
and  when  they  had  reached  it  the  children 
laughed  merrily  at  finding  that  the  "night- 
cap "  was  only  a  rich  purple  cloud  fringed 
with  gold,  with  which  the  sun  seemed  to 
cover  his  head  as  he  suddenly  dropped  be- 
hind the  mountain-tops,  veiled  with  their 
light  azure  haze,  now  converted  by  his  re- 
flected beams  into  a  sea  of  light.  Then  Mrs. 
Banks  bade  them  all  sit  still  awhile  and 
watch  the  ever-varying  clouds,  reminding 
them  that  the  great  God  by  whom  they  were 
made,  is  also  our  Father  I  and  that  he  has 
thus  made  all  things  beautiful  in  order  that 
his  children  may  delight  in  his  works. 

After  repeating    slowly  and    solemnly  a 
verse  or  two  of  Scripture,  she  called  upon 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  169 

the  children  to  join  with  her  in  singing; 
"  The  day  is  past  and  gone,"  and  then  bade 
them  kneel  down  with  her  upon  the  rocks, 
and  repeat  together  the  Lord's  Prayer,  re- 
membering as  they  did  so  that  they  were 
praying  to  him  who  made  the  clouds  as  the 
curtains  of  his  chamber,  and  holds  the  wind 
in  the  hollow  of  his  hand.  When  this  sim- 
ple form  of  family  prayer  was  ended  she 
said : 

"  Now,  my  dears,  it  is  almost  time  for  my 
little  people  to  go  to  bed.  You  will  find 
hens  and  chickens,  ducks  and  geese  going 
to  roost,  and  the  little  birds  snugging  up  in 
their  nests.  Uncle  Lemuel,  too,  could  show 
you  some  of  his  sweetest  flowers  shutting  up 
their  pretty  eyes ;  and  you  know  what  the 
old  proverb  says :  '  Early  to  bed  and  early 
to  rise,  makes  young  folks  healthy,  wealthy 
and  wise.'  Let  us  go  home,  therefore,  and 
see  what  good  food  our  Heavenly  Father  has 
provided  for  us ;  then  the  little  ones  must  go 
straight  to  bed,  and  in  the  morning  we  shall 
see  who  will  be  ready  to  go  with  me  to  see 
15 


170  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

Mister  Sun  take  off  that  pretty  night -cap  lie 
has  just  put  on." 

"  I  will !  I  will  I"  shouted  several  voices 
at  once. 

When  supper  was  ended,  they  all  went 
with  Mrs.  Banks  to  the  new  comfortably  ar- 
ranged nursery.  One  corner  with  a  small 
bedstead  in  it,  was  screened  off  for  George 
and  Harry — side  by  side  stood  the  two  ap- 
propriated to  the  couples,  Susy  and  Alice, 
Charlie  and  Emmy,  mammy's  soft  feather 
bed  rising  up  between  the  latter  and  little 
Phebe's  crib  bedstead.  They  looked  as  nice 
and  tempting  as  possible  with  their  snowy 
counterpanes  and  pillows.  The  bright  fire- 
light was  reflected  on  the  gayly  painted  walls, 
and  the  children  amused  themselves  playing 
with  their  own  shadows,  until  Mrs.  Banks 
called  them  to  see  her  room,  which  opened 
into  the  nursery,  promising  that  the  door 
should  remain  wide  open  all  night.  Then, 
when  she  had  heard  each  of  them  their 
evening  prayer,  she  left  them  with  mammy, 
who  took  her  knitting  and  seated  herself  on 
a  low  stool  by  the  fire,  to  wait  until  they 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS,  171 

•were  asleep.  Clara,  Annie,  and  Tommy 
were  to  sleep  in  Mrs.  Lee's  room  just  over 
the  nursery,  while  Annie's,  which  was  over 
Mrs.  Banks,  was  set  apart  for  Lizzie  and 
Fannie  Forest.  Clara  and  Annie  took  little 
Tommy  up  to  put  him  to  bed  themselves, 
and  for  a  long  time  he  sat  on  his  sister's  lap, 
looking  out  at  the  bright  stars,  while  she 
sang  him  hymns  and  told  him  Bible  stories." 

"  Sister,  I  wonder  what  does  make  the 
stars  shine  so  b wight  ?  May  be  they  are 
wittle  angels'  eyes,"  said  Tommy;  "and 
that  mates  my  hymn  say,  '  May  angels  duard 
us  while  we  sleep  till  morning  light  'ap- 
pears,' "  he  continued  as  if  thinking  aloud. 

Annie  and  Clara  exchanged  a  smiling 
glance  at  this  childish  notion. 

"No,  Tommy,"  said  Clara;  "they  are 
not  angels'  eyes.  They  are  little  worlds  like 
this  we  live  in.  What  could  have  made  you 
think  they  are  angels'  eyes  ?" 

""Well,  betause  I  was  thinting  a  dood 
deal  about  there  being  so  many,  •  many  of 
.'em,  shining  wight  up  over  us  like  they 
tould  see,  till  I  thought  the  wittle  ones 


172  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

might  be  the  wittle  angels'  eyes,  and  the  bid 
ones  Dod's  eyes.  But  I  don't  know  what 
you  mean  by  wittle  worlds  lite  this  dreat 
bid  one.  Sister  Annie,  won't  you  tell  me 
what  that  means  ?" 

"I'll  try  to,  Tommy.  You  know  this 
world  we  live  in  shines  very  brightly  with 
the  light  it  gets  from  the  sun,  and  so  do  the 
stars,  but  they  are  very,  very  far  away,  and 
so  they  just  look  like  little  specks  to  us." 

Tommy  looked  very  wonderingly  in  her 
face  for  some  minutes,  and  then  he  said : 

"Oh!  my:  I  tant  tell  what  that  is,  and 
I  believe  I'll  do  to  bed;  but  I  wish  they 
was  what  I  thought  they  was." 

"Well,  little  brother!  I  think  you  had 
better  go  to  bed,  and  to  sleep,  too,"  said 
Annie  laughing,  as  she  kissed  him  and  laid 
him  down. 

Clara  and  she  then  seated  themselves  at 
the  round  table  before  the  fire,  with  their 
sewing  and  drawing,  and  talked  together 
over  their  mutual  anxieties  about  their  dear 
invalid  travellers,  until  Marion  came  to  un- 
dress them  and  put  out  the  light.  Annie 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  173 

told  her  she  might  go  when  Clara  was  in 
bed,  and  with  her  little  Bible  in  her  hand, 
she  stood  thoughtfully  before  the  window, 
recalling  her  last  night's  conversation  with 
her  mother,  and  the  solemn  covenant  into 
which  she  had  entered  with  her  Heavenly 
Father. 

Marion  stopped  when  she  had  reached  the 
door,  and  watched  her  face  with  apparent 
interest  for  a  few  .moments,  then  stepping  up 
to  her,  said  in  a  kind  yet  humble  voice : 

1  Miss  Annie,  I  feels  very  sorry  for  you, 
and  wisht  I  could  do  something  to  comfort 
you,  miss.  Don't  you  think  it  mought  help 
you  •  ef  you  was  to  read  some  o'  them  chap- 
ters in  Job,  you  used  to  read  to  me  last  win- 
ter, .when  poor  George  died,  and  I  was  in 
sich  trouble  and  sick  besides  ?" 

"  Thank  you,  Marion  ;  perhaps  it  would," 
said  Annie  very  kindly.  And,  bidding  her 
good-night,  the  maid  left  the  room,  much 
gratified  at  having,  as  she  hoped,  returned  in 
some  measure,  "  Miss  Annie's"  kind  atten- 
tions to  herself. 

15* 


CU.A  PTEE    VIII. 

"  WELL,  here  we  are,  Alf,  almost  at  the 
gate,"  said  Frank,  as  his  cousin  Alfred  and 
himself  rode  in  advance  of  the  carriage  con- 
taining Alfred's  two  sisters. 

"  Yes ;  and  we've  had  a  famously  brisk 
ride,  for  it's  only  half -past  two,"  answered 
Alfred,  taking  out  a  small  silver  watch.  "  I 
wonder  when  Tom  ever  made  his  nags  go  so 
-before  1  However,  it  was  a  light  load — no 
baggage,  you  know,  and  it  couldn't  hurt 
them.  Uncle  Simon  lags  way  behind  with 
the  trunks  ;  I  shouldn't  be  surprised  if  he 
didn't  come  before  sun-down.  What  royal 
times  we  are  going  to  have,  old  fellow,  with 
our  guns,  dogs,  and  horses — doing  just  as  we 
please  —  except  the  time  we  are  in  school 
every  day." 

"  We've  got  some  body  else  to  please  though, 
you  know — good  old  Mrs.  Banks ;  and  to  tell 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  175 

you  the  truth,  I'm  not  sure  that  I  like  being 
tied  to  an  old  woman's  apron-string." 

"  Pugh !  she'll  not  interfere  with  us — she's 
only  a  housekeeper,  isn't  she  ?" 

"Why,  she  is  something  more  than  a  com- 
mon housekeeper ;  she's  a  very  old  friend  of  our 
family,  and  we  are  put  upon  our  honor  about 
regarding  her  wishes,  and  treating  her  with 
respect.  Aunt  Annie  talks  a  great  deal  about 
her  influence  over  us  too,  and  all  that  sort  of 
thing." 

"  What  kind  of  an  old  lady  is  she  then  ? 
Not  nervous  and  fidgety,  T  hope — or  an  old 
Tartar  either." 

"  Oh  I  no,  she  is  kind  enough ;  would  take 
any  trouble  to  do  one  a  favor  ;  but  she  is 
very  particular  about  some  things,  and  I'm 
afraid  she'll  be  rather  too  pious  in  her  way 
of  talking  to  suit  you  and  me." 

"I  don't  like  these  people  that  are  so 
mighty  good — talking  about  religion  all  the 
time.  Where  did  Mrs.  Banks  come  from, 
any  how  ?" 

"  She :  came  from  England  a  good  many 
years  ago ;  when  she  was  first  married,  I  be- 


176  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

lieve  •  and  lived  at  Belmont  with,  my  grand- 
father and  grandmother  Ludwell  from  the 
time  my  father  was  a  little  boy  till  they  died. 
Then  she  used  to  come  back  to  nurse  us  all 
when  we  were  young  babies.  She  nursed 
all  down  to  the  twins ;  and  I  do  like  her  very 
much,  though  I  can't  help  laughing  at  her 
sometimes,  for  she  has  a  droll  way  of  talking 
; — putting  As  before  all  her  vowels,  and  pro- 
nouncing some  of  her  letters  very  queerly — 
u  for  o  in  some  places,  and  w  for  v." 

"  I  suppose  she  says  weal,  wegetables,  and 
winegar.  "Well,  I'm  glad  she'll  give  us  some- 
thing to  laugh  at." 

"  Oh !  you'll  find  plenty  of  that  to  do  ;  the 
only  trouble  is  to  keep  from  doing  it  at  the 
wrong  time.  Ah!  I  want  to  see  how  you 
will  take  all  the  marvellous  things  you  hear 
about '  helder  berries  and  sweet  huile.'  I  ex- 
pect your  mouth  will  be  stretched  pretty 
wide." 

"  What  in  the  world  are  they  ?" 

"Ah!  you'll  see  some  of  the  famous 
*  helder  hintement '  the  very  first  time  you 
even  scratch  your  finger.  '  Made,  me  deal 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  177 

Mister  Halfred,  from  the  helderberry,  hand 
ha  little  sweet  huile  ;'  in  other  words,  you  ig- 
norant young  man — elderberries  and  sweet  oil. 
Then  there's  a  wonderful  ( medicine  called 
*  Mrs.  Banks's  Diet  Drink,'  made  of  sarsa- 
parilla,  molasses,  and  all  sorts  of  things.  It 
cures  all  diseases  even  before  you  are  taken 
sick,  I  believe ;  and  a  fine  chance  we'll  aU 
have  to  drink  it,  this  spring  and  summer." 

"  I  think  we'll  turn  rebels  when  it  comes  1^ 
that,  Franky,  my  man,  won't  we?  "We'll 
leave  all  that  business  to  the  girls,  poor 
things !"  So  saying,  Alfred,  laughing  heartily, 
rode  back  to  the  carriage,  and  thrusting  in  his 
head,  called  out : 

"Do  you  hear  Lizzie  and  Fannie?  You 
have  got  to  be  haninted  hevery  morning  by 
good  Mrs.  Banks,  with  helder  hintement  and 
sweet  huile,  and  to  be  dosed  with  sarsaparilla, 
molasses,  and,  I  expect,  a  little  brimstone,  as 
that's  English  fashion,  for  your  health." 

"What  are  you  talking  about,  Alfred?" 
asked  the  girls,  amused  at  his  comical  face, 
but  not  understanding  what  he  said. 

"I  am  just  repeating  to  you  what  Frank 


178  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

told  me  a  few  minutes  ago.  I  presume  it's 
the  truth ;  but  you  must  question  him  if  you 
are  in  doubt,"  replied  Alfred,  with  a  half-hu- 
morous, half-solemn  expression. 

"  Come,  Frank,  do  explain,"  said  Fannie ; 
"  for  I  see  brother  is  trying  to  hoax  us  about 
something  or  other." 

Alfred  drew  himself  up  with  mock  dignity 
and  rode  off,  pretending  to  be  offended,  and 
Fannie  looked  after  him  with  a  coaxing 
smile,  but  he  would  not  return  until  he  heard 
the  merry  peal  of  laughter  from  both  girls, 
which  followed  upon  Frank's  repeating  to 
them  his  account  of  the  salves  and  diet-drink. 
The  young  people,  then  putting  their  heads 
together,  were  still  planning  mischievous 
tricks  to  be  played  with  *  mother  Banks' s  nos- 
trums^ as  Alfred  called  them  when  they  rode 
up  to  the  house. 

"  There's  the  carriage,  and  brother  Frank 
and  Cousin  Alfred !"  shouted  the  children  as 
they  came  rushing  down  into  the  porch  to 
meet  them.  Clara  and  Annie  had  gone  with 
little  Tommy  to  an  arbor  in  the  woods  to  read, 
and  not  expecting  the  new-comers  so  early, 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  179 

had  not  returned ;  but  Mrs.  Banks  came  out 
from  the  pantry,  smiling  kindly  and  smooth- 
ing down  her  white  apron  as  she  wait- 
ed to  give  them  a  welcome  to  Belmont. 
Frank  introduced  his  cousins  to  her,  who  re- 
turned her  cordial  salutations  with  their  faces 
still  full  of  the  mirthful  expression  excited  by 
their  late  conversation. 

"Frank,"  said  Mrs.  Banks,  "if  you  will 
take  your  Cousin  Alfred  to  the  room  over 
the  portico,  which  has  been  prepared  for  you 
and  him,  I  will  conduct  Miss  Lizzie  and 
Miss  Fannie  to  their  chamber.  Our  dinner 
is  very  late  to-day ;  but  it  is  only  waiting 
now  for  you  to  brush  off  your  dust  and  come 
down." 

"  Where  are  the  girls  ?"  asked  Lizzie  and 
Fannie  as  they  followed  their  guide  up-stairs. 

"  They  should  hev  been  in  before  this ; 
they  went  for  a  stroll  in  the  woods  some 
time  ago.  I  have  sent  out  a  servant  to 
bring  them  home;  but  can  not  think  what 
ken  hev  kept  them,"  answered  Mrs.  Banks, 
looking  a  little  troubled. 

When  she  had  left  them  in  Marion's  charge 


180  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

to  prepare  for  dinner,  the  girls  looked  round 
the  room  in  amazement. 

"Why,  I  never  was  in  this  part  of  the 
house  before,"  said  Fannie.  "  I  thought  no- 
thing would  ever  induce  Cousin  Edward  to 
open  it." 

"It  never  was,  Miss;  at  least,  not  since  I 
been  in  the  family,  till  Mrs.  Lee  come  last 
fall,  and  she  got  master  to  let  her  go  in  the 
room  next  this,  what  used  to  be  the  old  cham- 
ber, and  put  Miss  Annie  and  Master  Tommy 
in  here,"  said  Marion. 

"I  do  believe  this  is  the  room  that  mother 
says  poor  Cousin  Alice  who  was  drowned  used 
to  sleep  in." 

"  Yes,"  said  Lizzie,  "  you  know.  She  said 
it  was  next  to  her  mother's  chamber,  and  that 
Cousin  Edward  would  not  allow  any  one  to 
go  in  either  of  them,  so  of  course  it  is ;  but 
how  plain  and  old-fashioned  every  thing  looks. 
I  should  think  they  would  have  had  hand- 
somer furniture." 

"  Mrs.  Banks  done  move  out  de  lest  things, 
and  lock  up,"  said  Marion  with  some  pride. 
'*  You  see  she  was  obliged  to  do  it  too,  cause 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  181 

the  boys  was  for  spiling  and  breaking  up 
every  thing.  Let  dem  alone,  and  dere'd  not 
a  been  any  thing  whole,  time  master  and 
mistus  got  back." 

Clara,  Annie,  and  Tommy  were  now  seen 
approaching. the  house  from  the  woods  laden 
with  moss  and  young  leaves.  They  were 
running,  and  all  three  looked  flushed  and 
excited.  Tommy  was  clinging  to  Annie,  and 
turned  his  head  constantly  round,  as  if  to  see 
if  any  thing  was  following  them.  When 
near  enough  to  be  heard  by  Mrs.  Banks  as 
she  stood  in  the  doorway  waiting  anxiously 
for  them,  he  called  out :  "  Mrs.  Banks,  will 
you  let  Jerwy  Thwip  tidnap  us?  We  saw 
him  just  now,  and  he's  toming  after  us." 

"  Did  you  see  Jerry  Thrip  sure  enough  ?" 
said  Susy  and  Henry,  running  out  to  meet 
them. 

"Yes,"  said  Annie,  "indeed  we  did  ;  and 
it  frightened  us  home,  you  may  be  sure." 

"  Where  was  he?"  asked  George;  "and 
what  was  he  doing  ?" 

"  I'll  tell  you  presently,  Georgie,  all  about 
it;  but  Jet  us  speak  to  our  cousins  first,"  an 
16 


182  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

swered  Annie ;  and  Clara  and  herself  ran  up 
to  make  Lizzie  and  Fannie  welcome. 

"  Now  tell  us  sister  about  old  Jerry  Thrip. 
Where  you  saw  him,  and  how  he  frightened 
you,"  said  Henry,  when  they  were  seated  at 
the  dinner-table. 

"  Well,  you  know,"  said  Clara,  ."  that  An- 
nie and  I  thought  as  dinner  was  going  to  be 
very  late,  and  the  morning  was  so  bright  and 
warm,  we'd  go  to  that  old  arbor  that  is  in  the 
deep  part  of  the  woods  and  read  Comus 
Annie  was  to  be  the  Lady,  and  wanted  me  to 
be  Comus,  but  I  objected,  and  fixed  a  cjueer, 
fantastic-looking  stump  for  him,  and  took  the 
part  of  Sabrina  for  myself,  and  made  Tommy 
the  two  Brothers.  I  would  get  behind  the 
stump  and  read  Comus's  parts  though,  and 
Annie  tried  to  ventriloquize  for  Thyrsi s,  the 
attendant  spirit,  and  teach  Tommy  to  talk 
when  the  Brothers'  turn  came.  We  were 
having  a  great  deal  of  fan  doing  this;  for 
Tommy  looked  so  comically  grave  and  earn- 
est, and  lisped  out  the  words  so  sweetly ; 
but  just  as  he  was  saying  after  Annie,  '  List, 
list.  I  hear  some  far-off  halloo  break  the  silent 


THE   CAXTERBUKY  BELLS.  183 

air,'  we  really  did  hear  such,  a  strange  noise 
behind  us  or  somewhere  in  the  woods,  we 
could  hardly  tell  where.  We  hid  at  first  be- 
cause we  were  afraid  to  come  out,  and  then 
we  heard  it  for  a  long  time.  Annie  said  it 
was  some  body  singing,  but  I  thought  it 
sounded  more  like  calling  cattle.  We  re- 
membered about  Jerry  Thrip,  and  were 
frightened  to  death.  At  last  the  noise  stop- 
ped, and  we  thought  the  person  'had  gone, 
and  started  to  come  home.  Annie  stopped 
on  the  brink  of  the  hill  to  get  this  moss,  and 
just  as  she  raised  her  head,  there  was  old 
Jerry  in  his  red  jacket,  sitting  on  a  stone  under 
a  large  hazel-bush,  looking  over  towards  the 
river.  We  screamed,  and  he  turned  round 
and  looked  at  us  with  his  dreadful  blood-shot 
eyes  till  I  thought  I  should  have  died.  I 
couldn't  move  until  he  began  to  get  up,  and 
then  my  strength  came  to  me,  and  we  ran  as 
fast  as  we  could.  I  was  thankful  enough 
that  we  were  most  home  before  we  saw  him." 

"Who  in.  the  name  of  wonder  is  Jerry 
Thrip  ?"  asked  Frank. 

"He  has  come  since  you  went  away,  but 


184  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

no  body  knows  who  lie  is  exactly.  The  serv- 
ants say  he  is  a  very  strange  and  wicked  old 
man  who  was  living  all  the  winter  in  the  vil- 
lage, prowling  about  the  streets  in  his  red 
jacket  and  long  gray  beard.  The  boys  used 
to  hoot  at  him  and  stone  him  when  he  went 
about,  so  that  now  he's  come  out  here  some- 
where to  stay.  Jackson  saw  him  on  this 
place  just  the  evening  after  father  left,  and 
he's  been  haunting  it  like  a  ghost  ever  since, 
climbing  a  tree  sometimes  to  watch  us  while 
we  are  at  play.  Mammy  thinks  he's  a  kid- 
napper, and  trying  to  get  a  chance  'to  steal 
one  of  us  off ;  but  I  don't  believe  that,.  Papa 
says  it's  nonsense  to  talk  of  kidnappers  paint- 
ing white  children  black.  He  does  go  about 
the  little  family  burying-ground  late  at  night, 
though,  and  sometimes  lies  down  on  the 
graves.  They  say  he  digs  up  the  bodies  and 
carries  them  off  to  sell,  and  that  is  such  a 
shocking  thought,  that  I  do  think  he  ought 
to  be  driven  right  off  the  place  immediately." 
"  Why,  it's  a  great  piece  of  impertinence  for 
him  to  be  intruding  upon  a  gentleman's  plan 
tation  in  this  way.  *  He  shan't  stay  long  in 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  185 

these  regions,  I  can  tell  him;  for  I'll  soon 
make  him  take  up  the  line  of  march ;  and  I 
wonder  the  servants  haven't  done  it  long 
ago,"  said  Frank,  looking  very  indignant. 

"  I  said  you  and  Alfred  would  make  him 
go  away  when  you  came  with  your  guns,  and 
I'm  delighted  you've  got  back,"  said  George. 

"  Take  care,  my  dear  Frank,  what  you  do 
to  a  poor  old  man  and  a  stranger.  Nobody 
knows  any  harm  of  him  ;  they  only  suppose 
he  will  do  these  wicked  things.  I  will  try 
and  see  him  myself,  and  find  out  all  about 
him,"  said  Mrs.  Banks. 

"  He  certainly  can't  be  any  thing  but  an 
old  vagabond.  No  respectable  man  would 
live  as  he  does,"  said  Alfred. 

"  There  is  no  knowing  Mister  Alfred  what 
misery  hard  poverty  may  drive  any  one 
to  do,  and  there  is  a  verse  in  the  Testament 
which  says,  'Judge  not  that  ye  be  not 
judged;'  and  another:  'Blessed  are  the 
merciful,  for  they  shall  obtain  mercy.' 
Think  of  that,  young  gentleman,  before  you 
do  any  thing  rash  or  unkind,"  replied  Mrs. 
Banks. 

16* 


i8f>  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  But,  Mrs.  Banks,"  said  a  good  many  lit- 
tle voices  together,  "  suppose  he  was  to  do  as 
naammy  says — catch  some  of  us  and  paint  us 
black  and  sell  us  for  little  slaves." 

"  Pshaw !  children,  you  mustn't  believe 
every  thing  you  hear.  If  you  are  good 
children,  God  will  take  care  of  you;  only 
see  that  you  keep  out  of  the  way  of  that 
roaring  lion  that  goes  about  seeking  whom 
he  may  devour,  and  I'm  not  afraid  of  old 
Jerry  Thrip  getting  any  of  my  little  flock," 
answered  the  old  lady  with  a  kind  smile. 
"Miss  Fannie,"  she  continued,  "do  take  a 
little  of  this  good  mince,  or  some  of  me 
wegetable  mess ;  it's  very  wholesome,  but 
you've  nothing  except  a  bit  of  bread  and 
butter." 

Fannie  bit  her  lip  to  suppress  her  laughter, 
and,  glancing  at  Alfred  and  Frank  made 
slyly  a  wry  face  at  the  homely  dishes  before 
her  as  she  answered:  "Thank  you,  Mrs. 
Banks,  but  I  prefer  this  to  any  thing  you  can 
offer  me  to-day." 

"Ah!  then,"  said  the  old  lady  kindly, 
"  may  be  you'll  wait  for  our  farmer's  pud 


THE   CANTERBURY   BELLS.  187 

ding.  I'm  glad  we've  some  dessert  for  you 
to-day.  We  do  not  often  hev  sweet  things 
because  they  injure  the  stomach.  When 
you  and  Miss  Lizzie  hev  tasted  this  pure 
country  air  awhile  you  will  not  need  them, 
I  hope,  but  will  eat  as  heartily  as  the  rest  of 
me  wholesome  cooking ;  then  you'll  grow 
fat  and  rosy  like  Emmy  here — she  likes  any 
thing  I  make." 

"  Don't  you  think,  madam,  that  a  little 
sweet  huile  would  improve  the  flavor  of  this 
mess  of  snaps  and  apples,  as  well  as  make  ifc 
a  more  digestible  dish  ?"  asked  Alfred  with  a 
very  serious  face  and  bland  manner. 

"I  do  not  know,  Mister  Alfred,  but  a 
little  ham  essence  might  answer  better. 
Will  you  try  some?"  answered  the  old  lady 
quietly. 

"No,  I  thank  you,  madam,"  said  Alfred 
still  preserving  his  composure,  while  Lizzie 
and  Fannie,  as  well  as  Frank,  were  endeavor- 
ing to  conceal  the  laughter  which  they  could 
not  suppress,  "  I  was  thinking  entirely  of  my 
sisters  when  I  spoke.  My  appetite,  you  see, 
needs  no  coaxing,  but  they,  poor  things,  look 


188  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

like  regular  city  girls,  wan  and  pale,  and  they 
are  very  apt  to  fancy  just  those  things  which 
are  the  very  worst  for  them.  I  know  that 
mamma  will  be  greatly  obliged  if  you  will 
put  them  upon  some  good  wholesome  diet. 
Perhaps  a  tonic  might  be  required  first,"  he 
suggested,  apparently  upon  sudden  thought. 
Fannie  and  Lizzie  were  nt>w  half-provoked 
as  well  as  amused,  but  they  could  no  longer 
control  themselves  when  Mrs.  Banks,  looking 
at  them  compassionately,  said  in  answer  to 
Alfred's  sage  advice : 

"  Tonics,  Mister  Alfred,  I  think  young  per- 
sons seldom  require,  especially  in  a  fine, 
healthy  country  like  this.  Keep  the  blood 
pure  and  let  them  take  plenty  of  exercise 
in  the  open  air;  ihafs  better  than  any 
tonics,  I  can  tell  you,  and  I  will  give  them 
some  of  me  good  diet-drink  which  I've  been 
making  to  day.  It's  made  of  sarsaparilla, 
molasses,  licorice  root,  a  bit  of  yellow  dock, 
and  jest  a  cup  of  yeast  to  make  it  brisk 
without  any  spirit."  A  burst  of  hearty 
laughter  broke  from  both  sisters  now,  as  they 
exclaimed : 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  189 

"  0  Alfred !  you  need  physic  quite  as  much 
as  we  do,  and  it's  too  funny  to  hear  you  at- 
tempting to  prescribe  for  us.  Mrs.  Banks, 
you'll  soon  find  he  is  altogether  wrong  about 
our  needing  tonics  or  any  thing  else." 

Alfred's  mouth  twitched  slightly  in  the 
corners  as  he  answered :  "  "Well,  as  to  that,  I 
appeal  to  Mrs.  Banks  ;  she  sees  as  well  as  I, 
and  all  the  rest  do,  how  pale  you  both  look, 
how  little  you  eat,  and  how  much,  in  short, 
you  require  treatment.  And  who  talks  about 
physic  ?  1  trust  you  will  neither  of  you  need 
that.  Only  drink  freely  of  the  diet-drink  till 
your  blood  is  purified,  and  season  your  food 
well  with  ham-hessence  hand  molasses,  then 
I  shouldn't  be  surprised  if  you  should  become 
as  robust  as  your  hearty  brother  whose  only 
danger  is  being  entirely  too  healthy." 

Annie  glanced  up  uneasily  towards  Mrs. 
Banks  to  see  if  she  perceived  that  the  new- 
comers were  turning  her  into  riducule.  But 
with  all  her  sense  and  judgment,  the  old  lady 
combined  a  simple,  guileless  nature  which  was 
entirely  free  from  the  slightest  suspicion  of 
those  whom  she  had  a  right  to  trust ;  and  she 


190  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

was,  besides,  so  thoroughly  convinced  herself 
of  the  efficacy  of  her  prescriptions  and  so 
much  interested  in  seeing  them  more  exten- 
sively used,  that  it  never  occurred  to  her  that 
any  one  could  find  them  subjects  of  diver- 
sion ;  she  enjoyed,  therefore,  seeing  the 
young  people  look  gay  and  happy,  without 
troubling  herself  to  find  out  the  cause  of  their 
merriment,  and,  turning  benevolently  to  the 
two  girls  said : 

"I  think  your  brother  is  pretty  nearly 
right,  dear  young  ladies,  and  to-morrow 
morning  I  will  send  you  some  of  me  beer,  as 
they  sometimes  call  it.  It  will  be  quite 
brisk  be  that  time,  I  expect." 

Frank  now  thought  it  was  time  for  him  to 
have  his  fan  as  well  as  Alfred ;  he  accord- 
ingly asked,  "  Don't  the  Henglish  like  brim- 
stone too,  Mrs.  Banks?"  but,  not  possessing 
Alfred's  self-control,  his  own  wit  quite  over- 
came him  so  that  he  was  obliged  to  leave  the 
table  in  a  distressing  state  of  strangling  and 
coughing,  produced  by  the  glass  of  water 
which  he  had  taken  to  stop  his  laughter. 

When  dinner  was  over,  the  young  people 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  191 

went  to  look  out  for  the  other  carriage  con 
taining  the  baggage,  for  Frank  had  given  no- 
tice that  there  were  a  good  many  packages  in 
it  which  had  been  sent  by  their  parents  from 
Baltimore.  Uncle  Simon  not  being  yet  in 
sight,  they  walked  down  to  the  gate,  where 
they  waited  some  time.  At  length  the  horses7 
heads  were  seen  as  they  commenced  climbing 
the  last  hill,  and  the  boys  hallooed  to  the  old 
man  to  "cut  up  and  make  haste  home." 
Annie  and  Clara  were  overjoyed  at  receiving 
letters  from  their  mothers,  written  just  on  the 
eve  of  sailing.  Mrs.  Lud well's  account  of 
herself  was  quite  cheering  and  she  seemed  to 
be  looking  forward  to  the  voyage  with  more 
composure,  and  even  pleasure,  than  she  had 
ever  done  before.  But  Mrs.  Lee  wrote  de- 
spondingly  of  Alice,  whom  the  journey  had 
greatly  fatigued ;  she  hoped,  however,  that 
sea-air  would  revive  her,  and  bade  Annie 
place  all  her  trust  in  the  Great  Physician,  and 
continue  her  prayers  for  his  merciful  aid. 
Annie  read  the  letter  over  and  over  again, 
first  to  Tommy  and  then  alone.  Tears  filled 
her  eyes  whenever  she  came  to  the  tendei 


192  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

lines  at  the  end:  "I  am  never  separated  in 
spirit  from  my  absent  children,  and  often 
close  my  eyes  that  fancy  may  picture  to  me 
your  faces.  At  times  the  sound  of  little 
Tommy's  pattering  feet,  and  the  music  of  his 
merry,  ringing  laugh,  echo  in  my  ear  with 
almost  painful  distinctness — painful,  because 
followed  so  quickly  by  the  realization  that  it 
is  only  an  empty  sound,  bringing  no  real,  lit- 
tle, warm,  living  form  for  me  to  embrace  in 
my  eager  arms.  I  bear  you  both  daily  on 
my  heart  before  the  Lord ;  and  when  at  the 
calm  evening  twilight  hour,  I  remember 
your  promise  to  meet  me  at  the  throne  of 
grace,  I  feel,  my  child,  that  you  are  indeed 
present  with  me,  that  I  am  mocked  no  longer 
by  a  delusive  shadow  or  a  cheating  sound, 
but  united  with  you  by  a  bond  closer  and 
dearer  and  more  enduring  than  any  earthly 
tie  —  sweet  fellowship  in  Christ  Jesus  our 
common  Lord  and  Saviour.  I  need  not,  I  am 
sure,  repeat  my  charges  to  watch  over  your 
little  brother.  May  you  both  be  securely 
sheltered  beneath  the  wings  of  omnipotent 
love. — Your  mother,  A.  L.  L.' 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  193 

Annie  was  still  sitting  by  the  window  in 
Alice's  chair,  musing  sadly  over  what  her 
mother  had  written  of  her  dear  sister's  con- 
tinued sufferings,  when  Clara  came  running 
in  with  her  letter  open  in  her  hand,  looking 
bright  and  hopeful.  "  Isn't  it  a  nice  letter, 
and  gives  such  good  news  of  dear  mamma's 
health,  doesn't  it  ?"  she  said  when  she  had 
given  it  to  Annie  to  read. 

"It  does,  indeed,  Clara,  and  I  am  so  glad 
for  you,"  said  Annie,  showing  by  the  warm, 
cordial  smile  with  which  she  looked  up,  how 
truly  she  rejoiced  with  her  cousin.  Her  mo- 
ther constantly  impressed  upon  her  the  impor- 
tance of  forgetting  herself  when  she  had  an 
opportunity  of  sympathizing  with  another, 
either  in  joy  or  sorrow,  and  she  now  made  a 
great  effort  to  lay  aside  the  sad  forebodings 
which  made  her  heart  heavy  about  Alice,  as 
she  went  on  to  discuss  with  Clara  some  of  her 
aunt's  plans. 

"But  you  have  not  told  me  about  your 
letter,  Annie.  I  am  so  sorry  that  mother  did 
not  think  Alice  improved.  I  don't  think, 

however,  she    is    ever    hoDeful    about    sick 
17 


19-i  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

people.  "Won't  you  let  me  see  what  Aunt 
Annie  says  ?"  said  Clara. 

Annie  sighed,  but  handed  her  the  letter 
calmly,  and  controlled  so  well  her  feelings 
that  to  one  Eye  alone  were  revealed  all  the 
anxieties  of  her  young  heart. 

"I  do  hope  it  will  be  as  Aunt  Annie  says, 
that  the  voyage  will  strengthen  dear  Alice, 
although  the  land  travelling  has  been  so  try- 
ing. But  come  now,  Annie  dear,  don't  sit 
here  any  longer  by  yourself ;  Mrs.  Banks  has 
great  parcels  of  confectionery  to  divide. 
Frank  says  he  does  not  know  how  it  will 
agree  with  her  conscience  to  distribute  so 
many  sweet  things.  Poor  Frank !  he  is  so 
distressed  at  his  laughing  so  rudely  to-day  1 
But  I  don't  think  Mrs.  Banks  noticed  it." 

"  She  seems  too  kind  and  good  to  think 
evil  of  any  one  ;  but  I  wish  the  Forrests  and 
Frank  would  not  do  as  they  did  to-day.  It 
is  hard  to  keep  from  laughing  when  they  do 
so ;  but  it  is  not  right  to  ridicule  one  whom 
we  have  such  great  reason  to  love  and  re- 
spect." 

"  Sister,  what  do  you  think  ?"  said  George, 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  195 

coming  in  with  a  very  disconcerted  face,  "  Mrs. 
Banks  has  locked  up  all  the  things  mother 
sent,  in  the  storeroom,  and  just  handed  round 
a  little  plateful  of  candy — here's  all  I  got,'7 
holding  up  a  small  piece. 

"Well,  George,  I  wouldn't  mind  about  any 
thing  to  eat,  quite  so  much  as  that.  I  expect 
mother  told  Mrs.  Banks  to  give  out  a  little  at 
a  time ;  at  any  rate,  she  meant  her  to  do  just 
as  she  thought  proper,  and  we've  got  to  make 
the  best  of  it  till  she  comes  back,  that's  all." 

It  was  time  now  for  the  sunset-walk  to  Mis- 
tletoe hill,  which  had  become  the  established 
custom  for  every  evening.  The  two  older 
boys  looked  reluctant  to  join  the  party,  when 
informed  that  prayers  were  to  be  said  there ; 
but  they  had  been  brought  up  with  too  much 
sense  of  propriety  to  decline  complying  with 
the  wishes  of  Mrs.  Banks  when  she  sent  to  re- 
quest their  attendance.  Fannie  and  Lizzie, 
too,  felt  like  pleading  their  long  ride  as  an 
excuse,  but  Clara  and  Annie  at  last  prevailed 
upon  them  to  go ;  and  there  was  something 
so  impressive  in  the  fervent  simplicity  of  good 
Mrs.  Banks,  as  well  as  in  the  seeming  convic- 


198  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

tioii  of  the  younger  children,  that  God  was 
really  present  with  them,  that  they  soon  be- 
came interested  in  the  scene  and  joined  heart- 
ily in  the  evening  hymn  and  prayer. 

While  the  little  occupants  of  the  grand  new 
nursery  were  making  themselves  merry,  chas- 
ing their  own  shadows  on  the^wall,  and  try- 
ing mammy's  patience  in  a  variety  of  ways, 
instead  of  going  "straight  to  bed,"  as  she  con- 
tinually exhorted  them ;  and  Annie  Lee  was 
waiting  by  little  Tommy's  side,  for  him  to  go 
to  sleep  under  the  soothing  influence  of  her 
long  Bible  stories ;  Fannie,  Lizzie,  and  Clara 
were  taking  advantage  of  the  mild  spring 
weather  to  enjoy  a  moonlight  walk  on  the 
smooth  white  gravel  below  the  front  terrace. 
Lizzie,  the  oldest  of  the  girls,  being  fourteen 
her  next  birthday,  was  considered  on  the 
very  verge  of  young  ladyhood,  both  by  her- 
self and  her  cousins.  She  was  inclined  to  be 
quite  sentimental  and  fastidious  in  her  tastes, 
and  disposed  to  look  with  contempt  on  Mrs. 
Banks's  rustic  management,  though  too  polite- 
ly brought  up  to  let  it  appear  in  her  conduct 
to  the  old  lady ;  now,  however,  that  she  was 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  197 

alone  with.  Clara  and  Fannie,  she  gave  free 
vent  to  her  feelings. 

"Dear  me,  Clara,"  she  said,  "I'm  amused 
at  the  primitive  sort  of  life  we  are  likely  to 
lead  here  with  '  Mother  Banks?  Our  consti- 
tutions certainly  ought  to  be  invigorated,  and 
our  minds  are  not  likely  to  be  injured  by  un- 
due excitement.  Mamma  certainly  has  suc- 
ceeded in  finding  a  place  where  our  heads 
wont  be  turned  by  society,  as  she  threatened 
she  would.  But  unless  our  school  exercises 
brighten  us  up,  I  think  we  are  much  more  like- 
ly to  grow  both  healthy  and  wealthy  than  wise" 

"  Oh  1  you  must  not  judge  too  quickly,  or 
be  too  hard  to  please,  Liz,"  said  Clara,  laugh- 
ing. "  You've  only  to  get  a  little  accustomed 
to  Mrs.  Banks's  notions,  which  I  grant  you 
are  different,  in  some  respects,  from  most 
people's,  and  I  think  after  a  while,  you  will 
love  her  as  much,  and  be  as  happy  as  any  of 
us." 

"  Oh !  I  think  she  is  a  mighty  nice  old  lady 
the  broad  black  band  round  her  cap,  and  the 
pretty  little  plaits  in  the  frills  make  you  feel 

that  she's  just  as  good  as  good  can  be;  but 
17* 


198  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

then,  Clara,  Liz  and  I  don't  care  to  get 
crimped  and  plaited  up  until  we  look  just  as 
expressive  of  calm  quiet  contentment,  as  her 
nice  ruffles.  We  look  forward  to  being  city 
belles,  one  of  these  days,  in  spite  of  mamma's 
scruples,"  said  Fannie,  with  a  roguish  laugh. 
She  was  a  bright,  sprightly-looking  little  girl, 
not  so  proper  or  dignified  as  Lizzie,  but  very 
kind-hearted  and  full  of  warm  generous  im- 
pulses; and  the  delight  of  Alfred's  heart, 
because  she  always  appreciated  his  wit,  and 
enjoyed  his  jokes,  even  when  she  herself  was 
made  the  victim  of  them. 

"  No  danger  of  that  in  your  case,  I'm  sure, . 
Fannie;  you  and  Alfred  would  find  some 
vent  for  your  fun  and  frolic  wherever  you 
might  be,  but  I,  on  my  part,  have  more  to 
dread  from  the  effects  of  this  quiet  dullness," 
answered  Lizzie. 

"  Well,  only  keep  up  a  good  heart,  Liz, 
and  we'll  find  some  way  of  amusing  you. 
I'll  tell  the  boys  to  have  a  horse  saddled  for 
you  to  ride  every  day ;  you  are  fond  of 
horseback,  you  say,  and  Mrs.  Banks,  you 
know,  approves  of  exercise  in  the  'hopen 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  199 

hair,'  and  then  day  after  to-morrow  we  begin 
school,"  said  Clara. 

"But  only  to  think,  Clara,  of  how  Alfred 
has  served  us  about  the  diet-drink  I  To- 
morrow morning  we  begin  with  dose  num- 
ber one,  and  how  many  more  will  follow 
nobody  knows;  and  the  worst  of  it  is,  that 
not  a  word  was  said  about  any  of  the  rest 
of  you  drinking  it." 

"Only  to  think  what?"  exclaimed  Alfred, 
as  he  suddenly  jumped  over  <the  hedge  and 
caught  her  round  the -waist ;  "  come  with  me, 
my  sweetest,  and  I'll  show  you  something 
which  will  make  you  say,  'only  to  think,' 
even  more  emphatically  than  that,"  he  con- 
tinued drawing  the  girls 'after  him  to  the  end 
of  the  walk  where  the  lion  stood.  Here  they 
found  Frank,  who  was  standing  before  it, 
with  his  hands  raised,  feigning  great  conster- 
nation at  the  metamorphosis  in  its  appear- 
ance. 

"  "What  in  the  world  have  you  been  doing 
to  the  horse-rack,  boys  ?"  asked  Clara,  sur- 
prised to  find  it  of  a  bright  red  color. 

"  What  have  we  been  doing,  Cousin  Clara? 


200  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

Why,  that  is  a  pretty  question.  What  do 
you  think  we  could  have  done  to  it?  Or 
do  you  suppose  that  we  young  men  would 
have  played  so  boyish  a  trick  as  to  meddle 
in  any  way  with  the  good  old  beast,  the 
king  of  the  forest,  who  has  stood  here  tamely 
for  so  many  years  ?"  said  Alfred,  assuming  a 
theatrical  air  of  insulted  dignity. 

"You  needn't  say  one  word,  sir,  to  the 
contrary,"  said  Fannie,  "for,  of  course  we 
are  not  simple  enough  to  be  imposed  on. 
We  know  you  did  it ;  but  how  could  you 
manage  it,  and  where  did  you  get  the  paint?" 

"Mayhaps  we  bled  him,"  said  Frank,  talk- 
ing through  his  nose. 

"  You  might  as  well  tell  us  at  once,  for 
you  can't  green  us  if  you  have  made  the  lion 
red,"  said  Lizzie. 

"  Only  to  think  !    Yes,  *  only  to  think !' 
Of  this  pretty  shade  of  pink, 
Coming,  we  can  not  tell  how — 
Suddenly — only  just  now  ! 
Over  our  lion  pure  and  white, 
And  very  pleasing  to  our  sight ! 
Why,  my  sisters  dear, 
Did  you  never  hear 
Of  the  common  use 
Of  bright  red  pokeberry  juice  ?n 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  201 

declaimed  Alfred,  balancing  himself  on  the 
lion's  back,  and  flourishing  a  bottle  of  juice 
with  which  they  had  just  accomplished  the 
wonderful  feat. 

It  had  for  some  time  been  a  favorite 
amusement  with  Mr.  McLeod's  boys  to  stain 
any  stray  animals  they  could  lay  their  hands 
on,  relishing  the  joke  very  highly  if  it  hap- 
pened to  be  some  one's  pet  riding-horse  or 
dog;  and  Alfred  seeing  this  bottle  among 
Frank's  store  of  treasures,  had  immediately 
thought  of  this  expedient  for  astonishing  the 
girls,  and  perhaps  frightening  the  little  child- 
ren, as  he  had  planned  to  pass  it  off  for 
Jerry  Thrip's  witchcraft.  The  girls  were  ac- 
cordingly bound  over  to  strict  secresy,  even 
from  Mrs.  Banks  and  Annie,  and  as  they  re- 
turned towards  the  house  talking  and  laugh- 
ing merrily,  Fannie  and  Alfred,  who  were  in 
front,  suddenly  stopped  and  motioned  to  the 
others  to  be  still  and  look  in  the  direction  to 
which  they  pointed.  At  some  distance  off 
between  them  and  the  little  family  burying- 
ground,  there  stood  a  grove  of  cedars,  and 
here  was  seen  the  form  of  something  gliding 


202  THE  GAXTEEBURY  BELLS. 

in  and  out  among  the  trees.  Presently  it 
came  out  more  fully  in  view,  and  proved  to 
be  unquestionably  a  man. 

"It  is  old  Jerry  Thrip  himself,  I  am  sure. 
How  strange  that  he  should  appear  just  as 
we  were  talking  of  him !  And  it's  exactly 
as  the  servants  say  about  his  hanging  round 
the  graveyard  at  night,"  said  Clara,  looking 
terrified. 

"  Come,  Frank,  let's  go  and  see  what  he's 
after,"  said  Alfred. 

"  Oh !  no;  please  don't  go  alone,  boys, 
and  with  nothing  to  defend  yourselves,"  said 
Lizzie. 

"  Well,  wait  a  moment,  Alfred,  and  let's 
take  the  girls  to  the  house,  first,  and  then 
I'll  get  papa's  sword-cane.  It  would  be 
better  to  have  something  to  frighten  the  old 
scamp  with,"  replied  Frank.  Then  as  they 
walked  rapidly  on,  he  hurled  a  large  stone 
in  the  direction  of  the  grove,  saying :  "  Wait 
till  I  come  back  after  you,  you  impertinent 
old  rascal." 

The  three  girls  hurried  through  the  nur- 
sery into  Mrs.  Banks's  room,  where  they 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  203 

found  her  seated  at  a  little  table  with  her 
large  Bible  so  placed  that  the  light  of  the 
lamp  fell  directly  down  upon  its  pages.  Her 
spectacles  were  lying  in  the  open  book,  and 
her  head  bowed  over  it  was  resting  on  her 
hands.  Evidently  she  was  meditating  upon 
some  passage  which  she  had  been  reading, 
and  an  expression  of  serene  happiness  was 
in  her  thoughtful  countenance  as  she  looked 
up  to  answer  Clara's  call. 

"We  have  had  another  fright,  Mrs.  Banks, 
with  that  horrid  old  creature !"  she  ex- 
claimed, looking  very  much  vexed. 

"I  am  very  sorry  to  hear  it.  How  did  it 
happen,  my  dear,  this  time  ?" 

Clara  gave  an  account  of  Jerry's  sudden 
appearance,  and  supernatural  manner  of  glid- 
ing about,  setting  off  the  terrors  of  the  occa- 
sion in  the  highest  colors ;  but  Mrs.  Banks 
only  smiled  and  said  : 

"Why,  it  seems  to  me,  Clara,  you  are  all 
of  you  very  easily  frightened.  The  poor  old 
man  was  far  off  from  you,  and  only  walking 
quietly  through  the  place.  The  servants 
have  excited  your  fears  by  their  foolish  sto 


204:  THE  CAXTERBUKY  BELLS. 

ries,  which  you  ought  to  have  too  much  good 
sense  to  believe.  I  have  asked  a  great  many 
questions,  and  can  not  hear  of  his  ever  doing 
any  harm,  while  on  the  other  hand  they  tell 
of  many  hardships  he  has  been  made  to  bear 
on  account,  I  believe,  only  of  his  ill-looks, 
which  seems  not  exactly  fair.  Stop,  boys! 
Mister  Alfred  and  Mister  Frank,  stop  if  you 
please !"  she  called,  seeing  the  boys  with  a 
lantern  and  cane  passing  through  the  hall  to 
the  front-door. 

"  I  do  not  wish  you  to  go  after  the  old 
man  to-night,  for  you  may  be  tempted  to  do 
something  which  you  will  regret.  As  long 
as  he  stays  off  at  a  distance  from  every  one, 
why  should  you  care  to  molest  him  ?  I  think 
you  had  much  better  try  to  find  some  way 
of  doing  him  good.  The  poor  old  creature 
may  not  have  his  right  senses  about  him,  and 
surely  it  seems  hard  for  the  hand  of  man  to 
be  turned  against  one  whom  the  Almighty 
has  so  sorely  afflicted.  Our  Heavenly  Fa- 
ther has  been  very  good  and  merciful  to 
each  one  of  us,  and  you  must  remember  that 
he  is  Lord  of  all,  and  that  to  whom  he  has 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  205 

given  much,   of  them  will  he  require  the 
more." 

The  boys  were  not  unwilling  to  be  stopped 
in  their  pursuit  of  Jerry  by  the  uncertain 
moonlight,  near  the  lonely  graveyard,  and 
therefore  readily  yielded  to  Mrs.  Banks's  ar- 
gument ;  she  arranged  a  bright  cheerful  light 
for  them  in  the  dining-room,  and  brought  out 
the  chess-board  and  several  puzzles  and 
games  for  their  amusement,  until  bed-time, 
when  even  Lizzie  pronounced  herself  pleased 
with  the  evening's  entertainment. 


CHAPTEE    IX. 

"  YOUNG-  ladies  !  Miss  Clara  and  Miss 
Annie,  an'  all  the  little  children  is  most 
dressed,  ready  for  their  walk.  You'll  be 
entirely  too  late  ef  you  don't  jump  right  up 
now  an'  hurry  wid  your  dressin',"  said  Ma- 
rion as  she  returned  for  the  third  time  to  try 
and  waken  "Fannie  and  Lizzie,  as  at  the 
dawn  of  a  sweet,  spring  morning,  Mrs.  Banks 
was  collecting  her  young  charge  to  accom- 
pany her  to  a  beautiful  arbor  in  front  of  the 
house,  covered  with  the  delicate  champney 
rose,  jasmine,  and  virgin's  bower.  Although 
the  creepers  were  just  beginning  to  bud,  it 
was  a  sweet  spot,  and  as  it  looked  towards 
the  east,  had  been  chosen  by  the  old  lady 
as  a  suitable  retreat  for  their  morning  de- 
votions. 

"Why,  Marion!  who  ever  heard  of  peo- 
ple's getting  up  this  tune  of  day  ?  I'm  not 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  207 

used  to  it,  and  really  can  not  do  it,"  said 
Lizzie  throwing  herself  back  on  her  pillow, 
after  sitting  up  for  a  few  minutes,  and  rub- 
bing her  eyes ;  while  Fannie  only  noticed 
the  summons  by  drawing  the  sheet  over  her 
face.  So  Marion  smiled,  and  turned  to  re- 
port her  want  of  success  to  Mrs.  Banks,  who 
shook  her  head  disapprovingly.  Nor  was 
Jackson  more  happy  in  his  efforts  to  rouse 
Frank  and  Alfred. 

Accordingly,  when  Clara,  Annie,  and  Tom- 
my had  come  down,  neatly  dressed,  and 
looking  fresh  and  rosy,  leaving  the  slug- 
gards to  enjoy  their  slumbers ;  the  rest, 
forming  a  happy  animated  group,  followed 
their  venerable  guide.  Clara  took  Emmy's 
hand,  and  Annie,  Tommy's,  and  carrying 
Mrs.  Banks  large  Bible,  they  walked  in  front ; 
while  Harry  and  George,  Susy  and  Alice, 
followed  clustering  together,  talking  very 
fast,  and  often  all  at  once,  stopping  now  and 
then,  to  hunt  for  pretty  pebbles  in  the  gravel, 
or  look  at  a  flower  that  was  peeping  up  its 
head  above  the  ground.  Notwithstanding 


208  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

these  little  detentions,  they  kept  ahead  of 
•  Mrs.  Banks,  little  Phebe,  and  Master  Charlie. 
Before  these  last  reached  the  arbor,  Annie 
and  Clara  had  drawn  out  the  rustic  arm-chair 
and  placed  the  well-used  old  Bible,  with  its 
many  markers,  on  the  little  round  table; 
then  when  she  entered,  the  children  took 
their  accustomed  places,  and  just  as  the  ris- 
ing sun  began  to  gild  the  wide-spread  land- 
scape, turning  their  faces  eastward,  they  sang 
Dr.  Watts's  little  hymn: 

"  My  God  who  makes  the  sun  to  know 

His  proper  hour  to  rise, 
And  to  give  light  to  all  below 
Doth  send  him  round  the  skies." 

Mrs.  Banks  then  read  the  nineteenth  Psalm, 
and  offered  up  a  short,  simple  prayer,  every 
word  of  which  the  children  understood. 
When  she  had  finished  she  said  : 

"  Now,  dear  children,  we  have  just  thanked 
our  Father  who  lives  above,  and  whose  dwell- 
ing-place is  far  brighter  than  the  glory  of  the 
sun,  for  all  his  mercies  to  us  last  night ;  and 
we  have  asked  him  to  forgive  our  sins  and 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  209 

take  away  our  naughty  tempers  and  evil 
thoughts,  as  well  as  to  give  us  food  for  our 
souls  and  bodies,  and  to  keep  us  safely  all 
the  day.  Kemember,  now,  that  He  has  pro- 
mised to  hear  us  when  we  pray  in  Jesus' 
name,  and  therefore,  as  he  is  too  good  to  lie, 
we  may  be  sure  that  if  we  earnestly  desire 
what  we  have  prayed  for,  he  will  not  fail  to 
do  all  that  we  asked  of  him ;  and  oh !  how 
much  you  have  already  received  at  his 
hands!  Will  you  not  then,  in  all  your 
pleasures,  whether  great  or  small,  try  to  re- 
member who  makes  your  hearts  glad,  and  be 
thankful  ?  And  when  Satan  tempts  you  to 
do  sinful  things,  will  you  not  also  look  above 
from  whence  come  all  your  blessings,  and 
thinking  of  that  Eye  which  sees  your  inmost 
thoughts,  ask  yourselves :  Shall  I  by  my 
wicked  conduct  grieve  that  holy  Saviour  who 
loves  me,  and  is  always  doing  me  good? 
Another  thing  I  want  you  to  remember  is, 
that  when  God  gives  us  an  abundance  of 
those  things  which  all  his  creatures  need,  as 
well  as  we,  he  means  us  to  share  these  mer- 
cies with  others,  thus  giving  us  the  very 


210  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

highest  of  all  pleasures,  the  power  to  do 
good  and  to  confer  happiness,  which  is  his 
constant  delight.  If  you  choose  you  may 
enjoy  something  of  this  kind  this  morning, 
I  grant  you,  only  in  a  small  way ;  but  you 
can  hardly  know  how  much  happiness  may 
often  be  caused  by  very  little  trifling  matters, 
or,  on  the  contrary,  how  much  sorrow.  By 
making  a  right  use  now  of  your  childish 
stores,  you  will  be  learning,  too,  how  to  act 
when  more  important  things  are  intrusted  to 
your  keeping.  When  you  hear  the  bell  ring, 
all  of  you  come  under  the  window  of  the 
large  front  chamber  and  look  down  on  the 
grass.  Perhaps  you  will  find  something  which 
will  please  you  very  much.  Look  down  to 
receive,  you  know,  but  don't  forget  to  look  up 
to  be  thankful!"  she  added  with  an  arch 
smile,  and  then  left  them. 

In  about  ten  minutes  the  bell  rung  out  its 
invitation,  and  eagerly  the  little  feet  scam- 
pered to  gain  the  appointed  spot,  each  one  of 
them,  except  Annie  and  Clara,  trying  to  be 
first.  Obedient7y  to  Mrs.  Banks's  directions 
they  kept  their  eyes  on  the  ground,  at  first 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  211 

rather  disappointed  to  find  nothing  there. 
Presently,  however,  a  rustling  sound  was 
heard,  and  then  a  great  paper  bag  was  low- 
ered from  the  window  above.  Having  nearly 
reached  the  ground,  it  was  suddenly  turned 
bottom  upwards,  showering  in  their  midst  a 
great  supply  of  confectionery,  books  and 
toys,  suitable  to  all  their  various  tastes  and 
ages,  besides  a  package  of  bright  colored 
handkerchiefs,  scarfs,  and  gloves  for  the  ser- 
vants. 

The  long,  loud,  merry  laugh  which  ensued 
pierced  even  the  drowsy  ears  of  the  four 
sluggards  and  made  them  start  up  to  inquire 
what  had  happened.  The  emptying  of  the 
bag  was  followed  by  a  general  scramble  and 
the  eager  exclamations : 

"  Where  did  it  come  from  ?"  said  Charlie. 

"  Above !  don't  you  know  ?"  said  Alice. 

"And  we  must  be  thankful/"  said  little 
Emmy. 

"Oh!  I  know  mamma  sent  them  to  us," 
said  Henry. 

"  Yes,  and  Mrs.  Banks  dropped  the  bag 


212  THE   CANTERBURY   BELLS. 

down!"  said  George  who  had  taken  a  sly 
peep  while  it  was  coming. 

"Yes,  you  are  right  in  all  your  guesses 
about  the  bag,  my  dear  children,"  said  Mrs. 
Banks,  who  now  appeared  at  the  window, 
with  a  face  radiant  with  smiles.  "  But  still 
it  came  from  above,  did  it  not?  for  it  was 
God  who  gave  you  kind  parents,  who  love 
you  so  much  that  they  are  thinking  of,  and 
trying  to  please  you  whether  absent  or  pre- 
sent ;  and  He  has  made  them  able  to  gra- 
tify so  many  of  your  wishes ;  but  I  wonder 
if  you  can  not  find  some  poor  children  who 
are  not  so  happily  circumstanced  with  whom 
you  may  share  your  abundance  f" 

Breakfast  was  on  the  table  by  this  time, 
but  very  few  had  any  relish  for  it,  so  excited 
were  they  in  discussing  what  disposition  they 
should  make  of  the  contents  of  the  bag,  and 
whether  "  lazy  bones "  should  participate  in 
the  enjoyment. 

"  I  think,"  said  Clara,  "  a  good  way  would 
be  to  set  out  a  long  table  under  Mistletoe 
Hill,  because  it's  nice  and  shady  there, 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  213 

and  invite  them  to  come  to  the  feast  and 
give  them  the  first  choice,  to  make  them 
ashamed." 

"That  wouldn't  make  them  ashamed,  sis- 
ter 1"  said  George.  "They'd  be  glad  they 
were  lazy,  because  they  get  the  best  by  it." 

"Let  me  finish,  Georgie,  and  you'll  see 
that  they  don't  get  the  best,  because  they 
won't  have  the  pleasure  of  giving — they  will 
only  receive  from  us.  After  they  have  what 
they  want,  we  will  give  some  to  those  poor 
little  children  at  the  mill,  who  have  such  a 
cross  grandmother,  and,  I  expect,  never  had 
such  a  treat  as  this — there'll  be  enough  for 
them  and  the  servants  afterwards." 

Mrs.  Banks  and  Annie  were  delighted 
with  this  plan,  and  most  of  the  children 
readily  agreed ;  but  George  and  one  or  two 
of  the  younger  ones  could  not  exactly  enjoy 
the  idea  of  giving  to  so  many  before  their 
tarn  came ;  accordingly,  it  was  arranged  that 
they  should  be  helped  with  the  first,  and  only 
they  who  were  perfectly  willing  should  wait. 
Henry  was  very  eager  to  carry  out  this  plan, 
so  he  and  Susy  were  dispatched  to  the  mill 


214  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

to  have  the  children  dressed  and  in  place  by 
the  time  they  were  wanted,  George  and 
Alice  were  sent  on  the  same  errand  to  the 
quarters.  Tommy  and  Emmy  staid,  to  wait 
on  Clara  and  Annie,  who  were  busy  arrang- 
ing the  table ;  and  Mrs.  Banks  took  Charlie 
and  little  Phebe  into  the  garden  with  her,  to 
help  her,  as  told  them,  to  give  directions 
about  working  up  the  beds. 

When  they  were  looking  over  the  things 
Clara  and  Annie  found  a  package  directed 
to  each  of  them.  Clara1s  was  a  pasteboard 
box,  containing  a  very  fine,  muslin  cap,  made 
just  like  those  which  Mrs.  Banks  wore. 
Annie's  was  a  collection  of  new  hymns  in  a 
handsome  binding  and  very  large  print, 
marked:  "For  Annie  to  do  as  she  pleases 
with." 

"  I  know  what  mamma  thought  I  would 
please  to  do  with  it,  too,"  said  Annie  looking 
very  much  pleased,  as  Clara  was  also  with 
her  cap,  both  of  which  were  immediately 
labelled  with  Mrs.  Banks's  name. 

Meanwhile,  the  "lazybones"  having  only 
risen  as  the  rest  were  going  to  breakfast,  did 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  215 

not  get  down  until  they  were  dispersed  on 
their  different  errands,  having  first  given  all 
the  servants  strict  charges  not  to  tell  where 
they  were. 

Just  as  Lizzie  and  Fannie  were  finishing 
their  toilet,  Marion  entered  their  room,  with  a 
waiter  in  her  hand  containing  two  mugs  of 
beer  which  she  said  Mrs.  Banks  wished  them 
to  drink  before  breakfast. 

"  Dear  me  !  what's  to  be  done  ?"  said  Liz- 
zie, looking  at  it  with  a  face  expressing  any 
thing  but  pleasure.  "I  wonder  how  the 
stuff  tastes?  suppose  you  try  it,  Fan,  and 
give  me  the  benefit  of  your  experience." 

"  !N"o,  I  thank  you,  sister ;  for  /  haven't 
the  least  curiosity  about  it." 

"What  shall  we  do  with  it,  Marion?" 
asked  Lizzie,  "  for  you  see  drinking  it  is  out 
of  the  question." 

"I  don't  know,  Miss,"  said  Marion  de- 
murely ;  "  Mistus  lef  word  for  every  body 
to  mine  Mrs.  Banks  ;  she  tell  me  to  bring  the 
beer  up  for  you  and  Miss  Fannie.  Miss 
Clara  and  Miss  Annie  always  does  jes'  as 
she  axs  them." 


216  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"I  know  they  do,  but  we  an't  half  as 
good.  I've  a  great  mind  to  throw  mine  out 
of  the  window.  I  wish  Alfred  had  it  this 
minute,  and  was  obliged  to  drink  it — how- 
ever, I'll  take  it  this  tune,  I  believe,  and  if 
it's  very  bad  I  won't  any  more."  So  saying, 
Lizzie  swallowed  hers,  laughed  afterwards, 
and  made  a  little  face  as  she  put  the  mug 
down. 

"Did  Mrs.  Banks  send  any  of  this  to 
Master  Alfred  and  Frank?"  asked  Fannie 
turning  with  a  very  amused  look  to  Marion. 

"  Not  as  I  knows  of,  Miss,"  she  returned. 

"  Well,  set  the  waiter  down,  Marion,  and 
you  can  go." 

As  soon  as  she  had  gone,  Fannie  took  up 
the  beer  and  with  a  mischievous  glance  to- 
wards Lizzie,  left  the  room  and  went  down 
stairs.  When  she  entered  the  breakfast-room 
she  found  Jackson  standing,  grimly  waving 
his  fly-brush  over  the  table  which  had  been 
cleared  off  once,  and  set  over  again.  His 
face  brightened  as  she  entered,  and  the 
chances  seemed  improved  for  his  being  soon 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  217 

relieved  from  his  solitary  and  tedious  em- 
ployment. 

"Here,  Jackson!  take  this  up  to  Master 
Alfred  and  tell  him  that  Mrs.  Banks  would 
like  to  know  whether  he  thinks  it  will  suit 
his  sisters ;  he  must  drink  it  all  and  give 
her  his  opinion,"  she  said,  handing  the  waiter 
to  the  servant. 

Jackson,  with  all  gravity,  did  as  he  was 
told,  without  any  suspicion  that  he  was  car- 
rying a  fictitious  message. 

"Botheration  she  does!  I  didn't  expect 
to  be  caught  in  this  way,  but  I  suppose  I 
must  drink  it  to  satisfy  the  old  lady,  or  1 
might  get  into  an  awkward  fix  if  she  should 
question  me.  I  must  not  let  Fannie  and 
Liz  know  it,  though.  Paugh  I  it's  a  dose," 
he  said,  returning  the  empty  mug  to  Jack- , 
son's  waiter.  "Come,  Frank,  let's  go  and 
get  our  breakfast,  for  I'm  impatient  for  some- 
thing to  eat  after  my  tonic}"1 

"It  serves  you  just  right,  Alfred;  you'd 
have  been  too  much  elated  if  you  had  car- 
ried things  your  way,  and  gotten  the  better 
of  the  girls  so  completely." 
19 


218  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

They  followed  Jackson  to  the  breakfast* 
,  room,  and  Fannie  gave  an  inquiring,  quizzical 
look  towards  the  empty  waiter  as  they  en- 
tered, then  turning  her  back,  walked  towards 
the  window  and  looked  out  to  conceal  her 
laughter.  Lizzie  came  down  the  next  mo- 
ment and  instantly  commenced  an  attack  on 
Alfred,  saying : 

"Well,  Master  Solomon;  I  hope  you  are 
satisfied  as  we've  had  our  purifying  drink." 

"Have  you,  indeed?  And  girls,  honestly 
didn't  you  like  it  ?" 

"  It's  not  so  very  bad  as  I  expected,  to  the 
taste ;  but  it  seems  so  nonsensical  to  be  drink- 
ing such  stuff,  when  you  are  perfectly  well, 
too,"  said  Lizzie. 

"How  is  it  with  you,  little'  Fan;  don't 
you  approve  of  drinking  it?" 

"Vastly,  sir;  especially  when  my  brother 
Alfred  drinks  my  share  for  me,"  she  an- 
swered triumphantly. 

"Oh!  ho!  you  little  mischief!  I  was 
just  beginning  to  suspect  something,"  said 
Alfred,  laughing  heartily  as  well  as  the  rest. 
"  Yery  well !  if  I  don't  pay  you  for  it ;  and 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  219 

how  shocked  Mrs.  Banks  will  be  to  hear  you 
were  guilty  of  a  fabrication — that  you  -used 
her  name  falsely  I  It's  more  than  I  would 
have  done !" 

"Ah!  Alfred!  it  was  only  a  quiz"  said 
Fannie  earnestly. 

"  Quiz  !  I  would  have  some  respect  for  the 
truth,  at  any  rate,  miss,  when  I  undertook 
to  quiz." 

"  So  I  do,  and  you  know  that  I  did  not  say 
any  thing  more  than  you  would  do  in  jest" 

"I  know  that  you  keep  at  a  respectful  dis- 
tance from  the  truth— perhaps  you  have  such 
veneration  for  it  that  you  don't  like  to  be 
familiar"  replied  Alfred,  chuckling  with  de- 
light to  find  that  Fannie  was  really  a  little 
teased. 

"  I  wonder  where  every  body  is  I"  said 
Lizzie,  trying  kindly  to  change  the  subject. 

"  I  think  Clara  and  Annie  might  have 
looked  in  on  us  before  they  went  out  of 
sight  and  hearing,"  said  Fannie. 

"I  expect  they  were  too  much  shocked 
at  our  laziness  to  think  of  such  a  thing,"  re- 


220  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

plied  Lizzie.  "  The  fact  is,  Clara  is  growing 
decidedly  conscientious." 

"I  thought  we  should  have  heard  some- 
thing about  the  red  lion  the  first  thing,"  said 
Frank.  "  Which  way  did  they  all  go,  Jack- 
son?" 

"  I  think  they'se  not  all  of  'em  gone  one 
way,  Mas  Frank ;  Mrs.  Banks,  she  took  Mas 
Charlie  and  Miss  Phebe  to  the  vegtable 
garden,  and  I  hearn  Mas  Harry  say  how  he 
was  gwine  to  the  mill  with  Miss  Susy ;  but 
they'se  all  gone  somewheres,"  answered  Jack- 
son with  a  grin  of  satisfaction  at  his  own 
adroitness  in  keeping  the  secret. 

"  What  a  nice  time  the  children  seemed  to 
be  having  this  morning,"  said  Fannie.  "  I 
heard  such  merry  shouts  of  laughter  just  as 
I  waked,  that  I  wished  I  was  with  them, 
instead  of  having  been  so  lazy." 

"  It's  not  eight  o'clock  yet.  I  don't  call  it 
lazy  to  be  ready  for  breakfast  by  this  time," 
said  Alfred. 

When  they  left  the  breakfast-room  they 
sauntered  round  the  house  in  the  bright  warm 
sunshine,  chatting  together  and  trying  to  spy 


THE   CANTEKBUKY  BELLS.  221 

out  their  playmates  until  Tommy  and  Emmy 
appeared  running  towards  them,  eager  and 
breathless.  When  they  were  near  enough 
to  deliver  their  message,  Emmy  stood  a  little 
back  while  Tommy,  advancing  made  a  low 
bow  and  said : 

"Ladies  and  gentlemans,  the  pleasure  of 
your  company  is  wequested  on  Mistletoe  Hill, 
as  soon  as  you  can  come,  to  a  feast." 

"A  feast,  hey!  why  that's  what  they've 
been  so  busy  about  then ;  I  wonder  whose 
notion  it  was  ?"  said  Frank.  And  off  they 
all  started  in  high  good  humor  to  obey  the 
summons. 

The  table  was  beautifully  set,  adorned  with 
evergreens  and  flowers  from  the  greenhouse. 
Clara  stood  at  the  head,  and  Annie  at  the 
foot,  each  with  a  waiter  under  her  arm. 
Harry  and  Susy,  Tommy  and  Alice  were 
stationed  opposite  to  each  other  at  a  little 
distance  from  the  table,  wearing  badges  like 
Clara's  and  Annie's,  to  show  that  they  also 
were  to  serve  the  company.  But  George, 
Charlie,  Emma,  and  Phebe  had  places  ap- 
pointed them  among  the  guests,  and  a  large 


222  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

arm-chair  was  placed  for  Mrs.  Banks  -under 
a  neighboring  tree  where  she  could  see  all 
that  passed.  The  six  little  motherless  child- 
ren from  the  mill  were  seated  on  some  rocks, 
bare-headed  and  without  shoes  or  stockings  ; 
but  with  their  faces  washed,  and  dressed  in, 
clean  though  coarse  blue  cotton  frocks.  And 
beyond  these  were  squads  of  little  negro 
children,  while  here  and  there  a  gray-headed 
old  servant  stood  leaning  on  the  head  of  a 
cane,  watching  the  proceedings  with  solemn 
interest. 

Clara  advanced  to  meet  the  new-comers 
with  a  bright  mischievous  smile  as  she  bade 
them  welcome  to  the  feast,  "  given  in  honor 
of  the  *  lazy  lones '  who  preferred  their  morn- 
ing nap  to  a  sweet  walk  in  the  spring  of  the 
year,  and  didn't  mind  missing  family  prayers 
when  the  rest  were  all  ready.  Do  be  seated," 
she  added  quickly  with  affected  concern, 
pointing  to  some  large  rocks  arranged  for 
the  purpose.  "We  are  afraid  you'll  be 
dreadfully  tired  after  the  exertions  you've 
made." 

"  You  think  you'll  put  us  to  the  blush,  I 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  223 

see,  Cousin  Clara,  by  your  ironical  politeness ; 
but  I  dare  say  we  are  philosophical  enough 
to  stand  it  and  enjoy  your  good  things,  too, 
knowing  what  extreme  pleasure  you  must 
take  in  waiting  so  generously  on  us,"  said 
Alfred.  "  Come,  friends,  let's  take  our  seats 
and  make  merry,"  he  added,  turning  to  the 
two  girls  and  Frank. 

When  they  had  amused  themselves,  keep- 
ing their  entertainers  as  long  as  possible  wait- 
ing, and  threatening  to  demolish  all  that  was 
before  them,  they  at  length  arose,  pronounc- 
ing themselves  delighted  with  their  enter- 
tainment. They  were  invited  then,  to  wait 
and  see  the  end,  Annie  saying,  "  Our  best 
time  is  coming  now"  as  she  called  up  the 
little  poor  children  and  filled  their  hands 
with  cakes  and  confectionery,  smiling  to  see 
how  pleased  they  looked,  and  how  new  to 
them  many  of  the  little  toys  were.  Mrs. 
Banks  called  them  round  her  before  they 
went  home,  and  cautioned  them  to  save 
something  for  another  day,  lest  they  should 
be  made  sick ;  then  she  talked  to  them  about 
the  Saviour,  trying  to  make  them  realize  his 


224  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

love  to  them  and  his  interest  in  all  their  joys 
or  sorrows.  It  was  a  happy  day  for  the  lit- 
tle creatures,  and  their  cheerful  voices  could 
be  heard  as  they  tramped  off  through  the 
woods,  laden  with  their  treasures. 

The  servants  were  afterwards  called,  and 
each  received  a  nice  present — their  hearty 
"  thank  ye,  Mistus,  thank  ye  Master,"  testify- 
ing their  gratification  and  pleasure. 

Mrs.  Banks  looked  surprised  and  pleased 
at  the  pretty  presents  which  she  received 
from  Clara  and  Annie.  And  when  the  feast 
was  at  an  end,  the  young  givers  all  felt  that 
they  had  realized  fully  the  enjoyment  they 
had  anticipated. 

"Oh!  look!  What's  that?"  said  little 
Alice  as,  on  their  way  home,  they  came  in 
sight  of  the  painted  lion,  having  been  per- 
posely  led  that  way  "by  the  older  boys  and 
girls. 

"What  is  it,  sure  enough?"  said  George, 
walking  forward  to  get  a  better  view.  "  Why, 
it's  the  lion,  some  body's  gone  and  painted 
red  •  who  could  have  done  it?" 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  225 

"Who  in  the  world  could?"  said  Frank, 
pretending  equal  surprise. 

"  Why,  it  is  very  strange !"  said  Alfred. 
"Look  Cousin  Clara,  what  a  curious  red 
color  it  is  too ;  here  are  some  places  where 
the  white  shows  through.  It's  very  strange  ; 
could  the  servants  have  done  it?" 

"No!"  said  Clara;  "I  am  sure  none  of 
them  would  ever  have  thought  of  taking 
such  a  liberty." 

"  That  part  looks  as  bright  as  old  Jerry's 
coat  when  we  saw  him  last  night  in  the  dis- 
tance," said  Frank. 

"Did  you  see  him,  Frank?  Then  I  be 
bound  it  was  him  that  did  this,"  said  Harry  ; 
"  he  just  wanted  to  frighten  us.  What  did 
you  say  to  him,  Frank  ?" 

"Nothing;  he  wasn't  very  near,  and  Mrs. 
Banks  was  so  opposed  to  our  going  after  him 
that  Alfred  and  I  gave  it  up ;  but  this  shows 
he  CAN"  paint,  and  if  it  had  been  a  little 
child,  may  be  he'd  have  made  it  Hack  instead 
of  red." 

"  Or  may  be"  said  Alfred  stretching  his 


226  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

eyes  with,  assumed  amazement  and  fright; 
"  he's  an  old  Ogre  that  can  turn  himself  into 
any  thing  he  chooses,  and  he  has  turned  into 
the  old  lion,  and  that's  his  red  jacket.  1 
expect  we  had  better  be  making  our  home 
before  he  eats  some  of  us  up." 

At  this,  some  of  the  little  ones  without  a 
word,  scampered  off  into  the  house  to  tell 
Mrs.  Banks  their  fears.  Alfred  and  Frank 
turned  then  to  Tommy,  saying :  "  And  why 
don't  you  run,  too,  sir?" 

"I'll  wait  for  my  sister  Annie,"  he  an- 
swered. 

"But  suppose  the  old  Ogre  was  to  eat 
you  up  while  you  are  waiting." 

"  Sister  Annie  won't  let  him  do  it." 

"How  can  she  help  it,  may  be  he'll  eat 
her  up  first." 

"  No,  he'll  never  hurt  her,  tause  Grod  tan 
teep  him  from  it." 

"But  how  do  you  know  that  God  will 
care  whether  he  hurts  either  of  you  or  not?" 

"  Umph,  I  know  that  well  enoug  out  of 
the  Bible*  why  even  the  wittle  birds,  he 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  227 

knows  about  and  takes  tare  of.  Mamma  read 
it  to  me  herself." 

"Look  here,  Alfred!  I  believe  you  and 
Frank  did  that  yourselves  and  are  just  try- 
ing to  frighten  us  all,"  said  Henry;  "but 
Greorge  and  I  have  found  you  out." 

"  Yery  well,  if  you  choose  to  think  so  you 
are  welcome,  I  only  hope  you  will  take  care 
to  keep  out  of  the  kidnapper's  way,  as  I 
wouldn't  like  you  to  be  sold  off  to  Georgia, 
that's  all ;  and  we  can't  run  the  risk  of  stand- 
ing here  to  take  care  of  you,  so  let's  go  in, 
Frank." 

Mrs.  Banks  had  some  trouble  in  soothing 
the  fright  of  Susy,  Alice,  Emmy,  and  Charlie ; 
she  assured  them  there  were  no  such  things 
in  the  world  as  Ogres,  that  the  boys  were  only 
trying  to  frighten  them  for  their  own  amuse- 
ment, and  offered  to  take  them  herself,  and 
show  how  easily  the  old  lion  could  be  washed 
white  again.  Frank  and  Alfred  were  very 
much  amused  and  delighted  when  they  saw 
her  going  out  with  a  basin  of  water  and  a 
sponge,  and  the  children  following  her,  to 


228  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

perform  this  operation.  They  called  Fannie 
and  Lizzie  to  see  them  from  the  window,  say- 
ing :  "  "Well,  it  has  given  the  old  lady  some- 
thing to  do  at  any  rate,  and  the  children 
something  to  talk  about,  and  we'll  slip  out 
as  soon  as  they  come  in,  and  stain  it  over 
again." 


CHAPTBK    X. 

WHEN  the  spring  was  sufficiently  advanced 
for  such  work,  the  children  asked  Mrs.  Banks 
to  let  them  each  have  a  flower-bed  of  their 
own  to  cultivate ;  to  which  she  very  gladly 
consented,  and  uncle  Lemuel  was  accordingly 
instructed  to  lay  off  their  different  parterres, 
and  get  the  soil  in  readiness.  Clara  had  for 
some  time  had  quite  a  large  garden  appro- 
priated to  her,  which  she  offered  to  divide 
with  Annie  and  Tommy ;  and  the  rest  had 
places  allotted  them  very  near  the  house. 

Good  Mrs.  Banks  took  a  lively  interest  in 
watching  their  operations,  very  much  pleased 
at  finding  that  the  inducement  to  secure  time 
to  work  before  the  hour  for  school  was  suf- 
ficient to  entice  even  Fannie  and  Lizzie  out 
much  earlier  than  they  had  been  in  the  habit 
of  rising ;  they  were  down  now  as  punctually 
as  any  of  the  rest,  and  labored  assiduously  at 
their  tasks. 

20 


230  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

In  the  evening  the  watering-pot's  were  in 
great  demand,  and  the  plants  were  carefully 
examined,  for  the  purpose  of  noting  and  com- 
paring their  growth.  Lizzie  was  soon  so  ab- 
sorbed in  the  interest  of  her  work,  that  she 
entirely  forgot  the  dread  she  had  once  felt  of 
the  quiet  dullness  and  seclusion  of  their  life  at 
Belmont  under  Mrs.  Banks's  government. 
Frank  and  Alfred  laughingly  begged  to  be 
excused  from  taking  part  in  this  early  morn- 
ing work  ;  but  promised  to  render  assistance 
occasionally  to  the  elder  girls. 

One  morning  Mrs.  Banks  had  been  walking 
round  with  her  knitting  in  her  hand  and  her 
little  key-basket  on  her  arm,  smiling  at  the 
bright,  happy,  busy-looking  faces  before  her, 
when  she  paused  and  said  : 

"  Children,  I  wonder  if  any  one  of  you 
thinks,  while  at  work,  of  those  other  little 
gardens  which  the  Great  Gardener  has  given 
us  to  cultivate  ?  I  mean  our  hearts,  and  the 
Christian  graces  which  we  manifest  in  our 
lives  are  the  flowers.  The  Holy  Spirit  will 
help  us  to  cultivate  them,  and  our  heavenly 
Father  and  the  holy  angels  will  delight  in  our 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  231 

success.  The  Bible  furnishes  us  with  plenty 
of  precious  seed,  which  must  be  carefully 
sown,  while  we  earnestly  pray  that  they  may 
be  watered  with  the  dew  of  God's  blessing ; 
then  we  shall  certainly  find  our  pains  abun- 
lantly  rewarded.  These  sweet  flowers  will 
never  fade  ;  but  bloom  in  heaven  more  beau- 
tifully than  our  greatest  efforts  could  ever 
make  them  do  in  earthly  soil.  Take,  for  in- 
stance, such  seed  as  this  :  '  Walk  in  love,  as 
Christ  also  hath  loved  us  and  hath  given  him- 
self for  us,  an  offering  and  a  sacrifice  to  God 
for  a  sweet-smelling  savor.'  Sow  it  in  the 
way  I  have  told  you,  prayerfully  in  your 
heart,  and  there  will  spring  up  a  plant  of 
priceless  value;  the  bloom  is  pure  white, 
being  wholly  unsullied  by  those  dark,  ugly 
spots  which  are  seen  in  the  coarse,  noxious 
weeds,  anger,  wrath,  malice,  and  hatred, 
which  spring  up  from  seed  which  Satan  is 
constantly  trying  to  sow  in  our  hearts  ;  but 
we  must  try  to  have  so  much  of  this  sweet 
white  flower  love  as  to  leave  no  room  for 
them.  On  one  side  of  love,  and  very  close  to 
it,  is  a  fine  place  for  joy — this  is  the  seed  of  it : 


232  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

'Kejoice  in  the  Lord  always]  and  again  I 
say,  rejoice.'  Its  bloom  is  bright  scarlet,  and 
it  not  only  looks  up  to  be  glad  in  the  Lord, 
but  like  the  scarlet  verbena,  which  brightens 
with  its  cheerful  hue  even  the  low,  yellow 
earth,  so  it  can  stoop  to  bring  gladness  to  the 
hearts  of  the  lowly  and  the  destitute  ;  for  this 
reason  it  keeps  close  to  love,  for  poor  indeed 
is  the  joy  of  the  heart  where  love  does  not 
abound  !  '  Live  in  peace,  and  the  God  of 
love  and  peace  shall  be  with  you,'  will  pro- 
duce on  the  other  side  of  love,  a  little  unob- 
trusive plant,  which  steals  up  silently  and 
spreads  itself  all  around.  The  little  blue- 
eyed  forget-me-not,  or  the  sweet  blue  violet, 
are  fit  emblems  of  it,  or  perhaps  even  better, 
the  calm  blue  sky  on  a  summer's  evening. 
Another  flower  very  highly  prized  in  heaven 
and  most  difficult  of  culture  here,  requiring  a 
spiritual  mind  even  to  appreciate  its  beauty,  is 
long-suffering:  'With  long-suffering,  forbear- 
ing one  another  in  love.'  How  perfectly, 
dear  children,  this  was  exemplified  in  the  life 
of  Him  of  whom  we  read:  He  is  despised, 
and  we  esteemed  him  not ;  surely  he  hath 


THE   CANTEEBUEY  BELLS.  233 

borne  our  griefs  and  carried  our  sorrows. 
Yet  we  did  esteem  Mm  stricken,  smitten  of 
God,  and  afflicted.'  Let  us  keep  our  eyes 
steadfastly  fixed  upon  him,  and  wrap  the  ten- 
drils of  our  love  more  and  more  closely  around 
his  cross,  if  we  hope  to  make  this  flourish  in 
such  ungenial  soil  as  our  proud  and  stubborn 
hearts;  should  our  culture  prosper,  it  will 
spring  up  tall  and  straight,  too  strong  to  be 
easily  injured  itself,  and  shielding  more  ten- 
der and  delicate  blossoms.  I  fear,  however, 
you  will  think  I  choose  for  this  a  homely  em- 
blem— the  sun-flower.  Yet  you  know  I  told 
you  that  long-suffering  was  not  a  showy  plant. 
The  sun-flower  looks  upwards,  however,  to 
the  source  of  light,  and  is  encircled  by  a 
crown  which  might  seem  the  reflection  of  his 
beams.  And  last  but  not  least,  my  dears, 
we  must  not  forget  to  be  always  trying  to 
4  grow  in  grace.'  If  grace  be  wanting,  vainly 
will  you  labor  over  the  others.  There  will 
certainly  be  some  great  deficiency  about  the 
little  gardens  you  are  trying  to  make  '  hal- 
lowed ground,'  betokening  their  final  ruin, 

thougu  they  may  seem  fair  and  flourishing 
20* 


234:  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

for  a  time.  Grace  we  may  imagine  either  as 
a  plant  distilling  from  its  leaves  a  gentle  and 
nourishing  dew,  or  like  a  tender  vine  creep- 
ing under  the  branches  of  more  hardy  and 
common  flowers,  and  imparting  to  them  some 
secret  charm  which  heightens  either  their 
beauty  or  fragrance.  Mignionette  is  a  very 
imperfect  type  of  this  heavenly  flower ;  still, 
we  may,  I  think,  trace  some  points  of  resem- 
blance. Like  grace,  it  has  a  sort  of  inde- 
scribable bloom,  yet  there  is  an  exquisitely- 
refined  beauty  in  its  fresh,  light  green  leaves, 
and  its  delicate,  shrinking,  bending  form  ; 
but  especially  in  its  all-pervading  and  deli- 
cious sweetness ;  sometimes,  you  know,  a  few 
sprigs  placed  with  other  flowers  which  have 
no  recommendation  but  their  showy  appear- 
ance, will  impart  so  much  perfume,  that  at 
first  we  take  the  fragrance  for  their  own  ;  so 
grace  renders  attractive  the  natural  qualities 
of  the  heart  and  mind,  and  gives  them  a 
value  which  they  could  not  otherwise  possess. 
"  What  flower  must  I  plant,  sister,  in  that 
wittle  darden  Mrs.  Banks  told  us  about?" 
whispered  Tommy,  whose  large  eyes  had 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  235 

been  fixed  on  the  old  lady  as  she  was 
speaking. 

"  Which  do  you  choose  for  yourself,  dear 
little  brother  ?" 

"  The  white  one,  sister  Annie,  tause  den  I 
tan  send  some  of  it  to  mother  and  sister 
Allie,"  he  answered  with  a  bright,  bewitching 
smile,  adding  quickly,  and  throwing  at  the 
same  time  his  arms  round  Annie's  neck,  and 
pressing  his  soft  cheek  against  hers  : 

"  I'd  save  some  for  my  sister  Annie  though." 

Annie  lovingly  buried  her  hand  in  the  rich 
clusters  of  shining  ringlets  which  covered  his 
head,  and  drawing  it  back,  looked  fondly  in 
his  face,  then  kissed  his  red  lips  and  said : 

"  Mrs.  Banks  told  us  we  had  each  two  gar- 
dens, my  darling  little  brother  ;  but  I  believe 
/have  three.  Here  I  kiss  this  marble  fore- 
head for  my  love,  these  bright  red  lips  for  my 
joy,  aud  the  deep  blue  of  these  sweet  eyes  I 
take  for  my  peace  •  while  here  is  love  again  in 
the  clear  white  around  my  peace;  for  long- 
suffering  these  bright  golden  ringlets  must 
do — yes,  at  the  top  of  all  they  point  upwards 
and  borrow  glory  from  the  sun.  "Why,  it's 


236  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

the  very  thing !  For  grace  the  whole  dear 
little  body  must  answer.  What  do  you  say 
to  being  my  third  little  garden,  full  of  pretty 
flowers,  blooming  all  together  ?" 

"  Will  you  be  mine,  too,  then,  sister  An- 
nie, if  I'm  yours?" 

"Ah!  Tommy,  I  would  directly,  if  you 
could  only  find  the  flowers  about  my  head 
and  face ;  but  you  can't !  My  eyes  are  black, 
and  my  hair  too,  and  my  skin  is  not  as  white 
as  love  should  be,  so  there  would  be  three 
missing  flowers." 

"I  am  so  sorry,"  said  Tommy,  looking  dis- 
concerted. 

"  Oh  !  never  mind,  dear,"  said  Annie,  "just 
let  me  help  you  to  take  care  of  your  two  little 
gardens,  and  I  am  sure  you'll  find  enough 
beautiful  flowers  in  these  without  the  third 
one." 

From  the  nursery  windows  there  was  a 
pretty  view  of  the  children's  garden,  and  here 
sometimes  Mrs.  Banks  would  take  her  seat, 
knitting  briskly  on  little  Phebe's  stocking, 
glancing  from  time  to  time  at  the  busy  little 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  237 

gardeners,  questioning  them  about  their  work, 
and  helping  them  with  her  advice 

"  Clara,"  said  Annie,  the  evening  after  the 
conversation  about  their  spiritual  gardens, 
"  suppose  that  we  begin  this  very  evening  to 
plant  some  flowers  in  our  beds  to  correspond 
to  Mrs.  Banks's  spiritual  plants.  Tommy  and 
I  choose  Love  for  our  first  one." 

"  Yery  well ;  and  what  white  flower  shall 
we  take  for  its  emblem  ?"  answered  Clara, 

"  There  are  so  many  beautiful  ones ;  I  can't 
tell  which  would  suit  best ;  suppose  we  ask 
Mrs.  Banks  ?" 

"  I  saw  some  beautiful  Calla  lilies  in  bloom 
this  morning,"  answered  Mrs.  Banks,  "and as 
I  looked  at  the  pure  white  as  well  as  the  soft 
velvet-like  cup,  bent  downwards,  as  if  to  pour 
out  its  golden  treasure,  I  thought  it  would 
answer  well  as  an  emblem  of  that  charity 
which  seeketh  not  her  own." 

"  Oh !  yes,"  said  Annie,  "it  is  so  purely 
white,  and  its  broad,  green  leaves  spread  out 
so  protectingly  too." 

"  Don't  you  think  Uncle  Lemuel  will  let  us 
have  one  or  two  of  his,  Clara  ?" 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Yes ;  I  will  tell  him  that  we  want  them," 
answered  Clara  very  confidently. 

"And  you  will  not  forget,  my  dears,  to  se- 
lect a  sweet  text  for  each  emblematic  flower 
which  you  may  call  either  its  seed  or  its  mot- 
to, only  be  sure  you  try  to  think  of  it  when- 
ever you  see  the  plant  to  which  it  belongs. 
I  dare  say  you  will  each  find  verses  to  suit 
yourselves  better  than  the  ones  I  mentioned," 
said  faithful  Mrs.  Banks. 

"And  then,  when  we  all  get  different  mot- 
toes, we  will  have  such  a  nice  collection  of 
texts  about  these  pretty  plants,"  said  Annie 
with  great  animation. 

"  Of  course  we  must  not  choose  the  same 
flowers  as  emblems  either,  then,"  said  Lizzie, 
"as  a  little  variety  will  be  wanted  in  our 
gardens." 

"  We  will  have  different  ones  when  we 
can;  but  each  must  take  a  sun-flower  for 
long-suffering,  I  suppose,  and  the  sweet  mig- 
nionette  we  can't  have  too  much  of.  "We  will 
repeat  our  texts  to  Mrs.  Banks,  and  let  her 
tell  us  which  has  chosen  the  prettiest  ones/' 
said  Clara. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  239 

"  One  motto  we  will  make  our  word,  for  all 
that  day,  trying  to  think  of  it  as  much  as  we 
can,  and  taking  some  other  for  the  next  day, 
till  we  have  had  them  all,  then  begin  over 
again,"  said  Annie. 

"  That  is  a  very  good  plan,  my  clear  An- 
nie, and  I  will  tell  you  another  good  result 
that  will  come  of  your  thus  associating  these 
texts  with  your  pleasant  hours  together. 
Hereafter,  when  you  are  all  scattered,  as  pro- 
bably you  will  be,  for  time  brings  many 
changes  into  every  household,  don't  you 
think  when  in  reading  your  Bibles  you  come 
across  these  same  verses,  they  will  affect  you 
more  strongly  as  well  as  more  pleasantly  be- 
cause they  recall  to  mind  a  dear  young  com- 
panion who  loved  it  very  much,  and  used  to 
make  it  her  word  for  the  day?"  said  Mrs. 
Banks. 

"Yes,"  said  Clara,  "and  then  we  shall 
never  forget  each  other  as  long  as  we  read 
our  Bibles.  I  know  who  will  be  remember- 
ed, besides,  and  who  we  will  love  and  thank 
for  many,  many  happy  hours,  too,"  she  added, 
smiling  knowingly  at  her  old  friend. 


240  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

Uncle  Lemuel  was  moving  his  plants  into 
the  open  air,  and  had  many  very  pretty  ones 
to  spare;  he  was,  however,  a  very  self-im- 
portant personage,  and  often  took  the  liberty, 
as  an  old  family  servant,  of  speaking  his  mind 
very  plainly  to  his  young  masters  and  mis- 
tresses, and  doing  in  a  grum,  surly  manner 
what  he  really  enjoyed  being  called  on  to 
do ;  so,  in  the  present  instance,  though  he  felt 
a  great  deal  of  interest  in  their  little  gardens, 
he  thought  it  quite  beneath  his  dignity  to 
manifest  this  feeling  too  warmly,  and  receiv- 
ed the  children  in  a  manner  which  was  ex- 
actly in  keeping  with  Frank's  soubriquet  for 
him,  namely,  Busty  Crusty  Fusty  Old  Fudge. 

"  Umph !  an'  what  all  dis  mighty  crowd 
'bout  now,  I  wonder  ?  Uncle  Lemuel !  uncle 
Lemuel !  uncle  Lemuel !  jis  like  uncle  Lem- 
uel had  a  hunded  pair  ears  and  a  hunded 
tongues  at  your  sarvice,"  he  exclaimed,  as 
they  all  came  eagerly  around  him  to  petition 
for  the  plants  they  wanted. 

His  manner,  however,  soon  softened  to- 
wards "Miss  Clara,"  as  she,  not  noticing  his 
salutation,  said,  with  a  little  quiet  air  of  au- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  241 

thority  which  she  had  acquired  whilst  acting 
as  mamma's  proxy  so  often  during  the  past 
year: 

"Uncle  Lemuel,  I  want  you  to  find  us  all 
the  different  flowers  we  ask  you  for,  and  tell 
us  the  best  way  of  raising  them.  "We  shall 
not  injure  your  collection,  but  rather  improve 
it;  so  you  needn't  make  any  objection. 

"Annie  has  chosen  the  Calla  lily;  now, 
Lizzie,  you  must  take  your  choice  next,"  she 
continued,  turning  to  her  cousin. 

Lizzie  said :  "  I  will  take  the  white  Azalia, 
Clara,  if  you  will  let  me ;  it  has  always  been 
my  favorite  white  flower." 

"And  I  choose  the  Cape  Jasmine,"  said 
Fannie. 

"I  will  take  a  Day  lily,  then,  for  myself,' 
said  Clara.  "  Uncle  Lemuel,  you  can  get  me 
a  good  root  from  the  one  mamma  had  last 
year,  can't  you  ?" 

"  Dare  say  I  kin,  Miss  Clara." 

"I  mean  to  do  like  Beauty.     Choose  a 
sweet  white  rose ;  and  may  be  Uncle  Lemuel 
will  turn  a  good-natured,  kind  beast,  and  give 
21 


242  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

me  a  great  many  pretty  things  besides,"  said 
Susy. 

Uncle  Lemuel  was  quite  gratified  at  this 
acknowledgment  of  his  power;  his  mouth 
almost  relaxed  into  a  broad  grin  as  he  re- 
plied : 

"  I  wisht  I  knowed  whar  the  putty  things 
comin  from,  den,  Miss  Susy ;  but  to  be  sure 
I'se  as  willin'  as  ever  to  do  the  best  I  kin  for 
all  o'  you,  only  please  all  heb  good  marners, 
and  wait  till  the  proper  time  come  for  each 
to  be  sarved." 

Alice  chose  a  white  camelia,  and  George  a 
pocnia.  Henry  said  he  would  leave  Susy 
the  white  teas,  and  take  a  white  daily  rose. 
Emmy  asked  Mrs.  Banks  to  choose  her  a 
flower,  and  she  selected  the  sweet-scented  can- 
dytuft ;  while  for  Charlie  she  took  a  white 
oleander.  Uncle  Lemuel  could  not  forbear 
giving  a  little  contemptuous  shrug,  and  say- 
ing: "  'Spose  you  all  'spects  these  flowers  to 
be  in  bloom  all  at  de  same  time,  does  you  ? 
Not  minding  if  more  'an  half  of  'em  is  out  of 
date  now,  and  won't  come  round  agin  fore 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  243 

middle  of  de  summer.  There's  Miss  Clara's 
day  lily  an't  gwine  to  bloom  fore  August, 
for  one" 

"  Oh !  never  mind  that,  uncle  Busty  Crusty, 
we  don't  care  to  be  in  bloom  all  at  once  ;  but 
stop!  Alf  and  I  must  choose  a  white  flower, 
too,  and  get  one  of  our  pet  cousins  to  make  it 
grow  for  us.  I  shall  take  Uncle  Lemuel's 
white  carnation  he's  so  proud  of;  and  Cousin 
Fan  shall  plant  it  in  her  flower-bed,7'  said 
Frank. 

"  Taken  in  that  amiable  and  humble  spirit, 
of  course,  you  won't  be  at  a  loss  for  a  Scrip- 
ture motto  for  it,"  said  Fannie,  with  playful 
irony. 

"  It's  the  very  apple  of  your  eye,  Uncle 
Lemuel,  an't  it,  being  something  new  ?  I'm 
afraid  I'll  not  get  it  by  very  fair  measures, 
either ;  but  I  must  teach  the  old  gentleman 
that  the  end  sanctifies  the  means,"  Frank  re- 
plied laughingly. 

"  For  my  part,"  said  Alfred,  glancing  mis- 
chievously at  Annie,  "I  should  like  to  choose 
the  Noisette  Lee  for  my  love,  and  let  Cousin 
Annie  take  care  of  it  for  me  ;  but  I'm  afraid 


244  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

there's  too  much  of  the  "blush  in  its  pretty  face 
to  make  it  as  spiritual  a  plant  as  it  ought  to 
be;  although  I  must  confess,  /like  it  all  the 
better  for  that  little  tinge." 

The  girls  all  laughed  heartily,  and  looked 
to  see  how  Annie  would  receive  this  playful 
sally ;  she  only  smiled  slightly,  and  tried  to 
change  the  subject.  Mrs.  Banks  looked  very- 
grave  indeed,  not  relishing  any  approach  to 
a  jest  when  sacred  things  were  alluded  to. 

"  There  is  a  white  verbena,  Mister  Alfred, 
which  may  be  you'd  like,"  she  said  rather 
dryly. 

"  Thank  you,  madam,  I've  no  doubt  it 
will  do  as  well  as  any  thing,"  he  answered 
laughing. 

Having  satisfied  themselves  with  their  first 
emblematic  flowers,  they  now  retreated  to  the 
house  to  choose  mottoes.  Annie,  after  think- 
ing for  some  time,  concluded  that  Tommy  and 
herself  would  take  the  13th  of  1  Cor.,  and 
already  her  fancy  pictured  her  mother's  plea- 
sure when  Tommy  should  repeat  it  to  her  for 
the  first  time. 


CHAPTEE    XI. 

"  GUDE  mornin7,  bonnie  ladie  I"  said  a  hol- 
low, cracked  voice  one  morning  to  Annie 
Lee,  who  was  stooping  down  very  low,  near 
her  little  flower-bed,  in  search  of  her  lost 
thimble,  which  she  had  just  dropped  from 
her  pocket.  Greatly  startled  at  this  unex- 
pected sound,  the  little  girl  sprang  up 
quickly,  and  looking  round  beheld  Jerry 
Thrip  standing  close  beside  her.  Annie  was 
naturally  very  timid,  and  had  always  led  a 
quiet,  sheltered  sort  of  life,  leaning  for  direc- 
tion in  every  thing  upon  her  mother.  When 
she  found  herself,  therefore,  entirely  alone 
with  this  wretched-looking  being,  so  long  an 
object  of  terror  to  herself  and  her  young 
.companions,  she  was  for  a  moment  exceed- 
ingly frightened  and  at  a  loss  what  to  do. 
Her  first  impulse  was  to  run,  but  there  was 
something  in  the  poor  creature's  appearance 
21* 


246  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

which  awakened  her  compassion,  and  while 
she  stood  hesitating  whether  to  go  or  stay, 
he  took  off  his  tattered  cap,  and  bowing  re- 
spectfully, repeated  his  salutation :  "  Gude 
mornin7,  bonnie  maid,"  adding  very  humbly : 

"  "Wad  ye  forgie  a  puir  sick  auld  mon  for 
passin'  sae  near  ye?  I  thocht,  maybae  it 
wad  na'  disturb  ony  at  this  tome  o'  the  day." 

This  speech  moved  Annie  very  much,  and 
at  the  same  moment  her  eye  rested  on  her 
beautiful  Calla  lily,  reminding  her  of  its 
sweet  signification,  "  Love  suffereth  long  and 
is  kind"  She  involuntarily  repeated  to  her- 
self, then  quickly  stopping  Jerry  as  he  was 
about  to  pass  on  without  waiting  for  an  an- 
swer, she  said  with  a  soft  kind  voice  and 
manner : 

"  Good  morning,  poor  Jerry,  you  don't 
disturb  me  at  all.  Have  you  walked  far  this 
morning?" 

"  I've  na7  earned  sae  lang  away  yet,  ladie, 
but  was  ganging  to  the  toon,  and  that  is  far 
frae  me,  travellin'  roun'  the  big  road,  sae  I 
just  tak'd  the  path  through." 

"  Where  do  you  live  ?"  asked  Annie. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  247 

"  It's  a  puir  place  eneugh,  ladie,  being  na' 
but  a  small  hovel  in  the  woods,  beyont  yer 
fither's  gate  some  mile  or  mair." 

"  Are  you  all  alone  there,  and  didn't  you 
say  you  were  sick  ?" 

A  great  tear  rolled  down  old  Jerry's 
sunken  cheek ;  then  brushing  it  off  with  the 
back  of  his  hand,  he  fixed  his  eyes  so  wildly 
on  Annie  for  a  few  moments,  that  she  was 
terrified  until  he  dropped  them  again  upon 
the  ground,  and  murmured  in  answer  to  the 
latter  part  of  her  question : 

"  Sae  sick  I  had  na'  thocht  to  use  these 
auld  limbs  ony  mair;  but  their's  na  tellin' 
the  great  Maister's  mind.  He's  mad'  me  to 
bide  yet,  so  ther's  mair  to  be  suffered  afore 
it's  a'  doone." 

"If  you  will  come  witn  me  up  to  the 
house,  I'll  call  Mrs.  Banks  to  see  you.  She 
will  be  glad  to  give  you  a  good  breakfast 
before  you  go  any  farther,  and  maybe  she 
could  cure  you  too,  as  she's  a  good  doctor,'1 
said  Annie. 

"  Mony,  mony  thanks  to  ye,  gude  canny 


248  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

ladie,  but  I  maun  frighten  the  weans  wi'  me 
scareful  face." 

"  No  one  will  be  frightened  if  they  see 
you  come  with  me.  It  was  only  because 
you  were  such  a  stranger,  and  we  did  not 
know  why  you  came  that  we  were  scared," 
answered  Annie,  blushing  very  much  at  the 
latter  part  of  her  reply  as  she  remembered 
how  much  alarm  she  had  once  felt,  and 
shown,  too,  at  the  sight  of  him. 

Jerry  still  hesitated,  but  Annie  insisted, 
and  he  presently  yielded. 

Frank  and  Alfred  were  standing  in  the 
portico,  cleaning  their  guns,  when,  followed 
by  her  humble  attendant,  she  ascended  the 
terrace  and  came  in  sight. 

"  Only  to  see  that  /"  exclaimed  Frank, 
pointing  towards  her;  "that's  personifying 
Charity,  I  think ;  keeping  company  with  an 
old  vagrant.  What  can  she  be  going  to  do 
with  him,  I  wonder  ?" 

"I  don't  know,"  answered  Alfred,  "but 
that's  what  I  call  real  goodness  in  Cousin 
Annie,  for  she  was  as  much  afraid  of  him  as 
any  body,  until  Mrs.  BanKs  said  something 


THE  CANTERBUKY  BELLS.  249 

about  his  being  poor  and  miserable,  and  it 
being  every  body's  duty  to  relieve  suffering 
wherever  they  met  with  it.  I  noticed  her 
great  black  eyes  getting  larger  and  softer 
and  darker  as  she  was  listening  to  her  the 
very  last  time  the  old  lady  talked  to  the 
children.  She  made  me  feel  quite  ashamed 
of  my  own  hard-heartedness,  and  it  isn't 
every  little  girl,  I  can  tell  you,  who  would 
bear  to  be  laughed  at  for  her  kindness  as 
Annie  must  know  she  is  very  certain  to  be 
by  us  bad  boys." 

"  Pshaw  !  Annie  just  likes  to  set  herself 
up  for  a  pattern  to  every  body  else;  she's 
got  a  way  of  imitating  Aunt  Annie  since  she 
went  away." 

"  I  don't  see  how  she  sets  herself  up  at  all, 
Frank.  I'm  sure  she's  always  the  first  to 
find  some  excuse  for  any  one  of  us  that  gets 
into  a  scrape,  and  when  she  can't  join  in  our 
wild  pranks  only  slips  quietly  out  of  the 
way  or  says  in  the  gentlest  manner  in  the 
world:  "I  think  I'd  rather  not."  Depend 
upon  it,  Frank,  our  little  cousin  is  trying  to 


250  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

do  right  all  the  time,  and  not  thinking  of 
making  any  show  about  it." 

"  Umph !  I  don't  see  the  use  of  your  de- 
fending Annie  so  warmly.  I  didn't  mean 
what  I  said  in  sober  earnest,  though  I  really 
think  she  needn't  be  bringing  that  old  beggar 
up  to  the  door  and  spoiling  our  fun  with  the 
children,"  said  Frank. 

Tommy  had  been  watching  at  the  window 
for  his  sister,  and  as  soon  as  he  saw  her  com- 
ing, ran  down  to  meet  her,  feeling  such  con- 
fidence in  her  protection,  that  even  old  Jerry 
could  not  frighten  him  so  long  as  she  did  not 
seem  afraid  of  him. 

"  How  dy  do,  Jerwy,"  he  said  promptly, 
extending  his  little  hand,  and  looking  up 
with  perfect  assurance  into  his  face.  Jerry 
seemed  much  touched  by  the  frank,  confid- 
ing manner  of  the  child,  which  was  quite  un- 
expected to  him. 

"Bonnie  wee  bairn!  bonnie  wee  bairn, 
surely  it's  sich  as  thysel'  that's  in  heaven," 
he  exclaimed,  and  again  a  tear  stood  in  his 
eye  as  he  humbly  touched  the  little  white 
hand  with,  the  tips  of  his  fingers,  instantly 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  251 

however,  withdrawing  them,  as  if  fearful  of 
contaminating  its  purity.  Tommy's  thought- 
ful blue  eyes  were  immediately  fixed  upon 
him  with  an  earnest  pitying  look  when  he 
noticed  the  tear,  and  he  seemed  to  be  trying 
to  think  of  something  to  give  him  to  comfort 
him.  Presently  he  said  as  if  quite  satisfied 
with  his  sudden  thought : 

"  I'll  ask  Cousin  Fwank  to  climb  up  and 
det  you  some  chewies.  Don't  you  want 
some  putty  wed  chewies  ?"  and  not  waiting 
to  hear  whether  Jerry  wanted  them  or  not, 
he  hurried  off  to  engage  Frank's  services. 

Mrs.  Banks  smiled  very  kindly,  and  patted 
Annie's  cheek,  when  the  little  girl  at  length 
found  her  and  told  her  that  she  had  brought 
poor  old  Jerry  to  be  ministered  to.  She  in- 
vited the  old  man  into  her  open  pantry  and 
had  hot  coffee  and  bread  set  before  him,  drew 
from  him  all  she  could  of  his  history,  (this 
however  was  very  little,)  gave  him  herbs  and 
medicines  for  his  rheumatism,  and  promised 
to  go  and  see  him.  Meantime  she  told  him, 
if  he  would,  he  might  gather  wild  herbs  and 
roots  for  her,  which  she  was  in  want  of,  that 


252  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

she  would  gladly  buy  them  from  him,  and 
thus  save  his  going  so  far  for  work  until  he 
felt  stronger. 

Much  refreshed  by  his  comfortable  break- 
fast, he  rose  to  go,  leaving  thanks  and  bless- 
ings for  Annie  and  Mrs.  Banks.  Little  Tom- 
my came  running  in  as  he  was  going,  laden 
with  several  large  branches  from  the  cherry- 
tree,  filled  with  ripe  luscious-looking  fruit, 
which  he  put  in  Jerry's  basket,  saying : 

"  Tome  adain  when  I'm  a  bidder  boy,  and 
I'll  climb  up  the  twee  and  det  you  some 
more." 

After  this  friendly  visit  from  old  Jerry 
Thrip  the  children  might  entirely  have  over- 
come  their  fear  of  him,  had  not  Frank  and 
Alfred,  aided  by  some  of  the  servants  set 
themselves  industriously  to  work  inventing 
new  fables  to  his  discredit.  And  by  con- 
stantly holding  him  up  as  an  object  of  terror 
and  suspicion,  they  wrought  so  strongly  upon 
their  imaginations,  that  the  feeling  of  dread 
and  repugnance  was  daily  becoming  stronger 
and  more  deeply-rooted.  A  threat  of  send- 
ing for  Jerry  would,  at  any  time,  make  them 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  253 

perfectly  obedient  and  submissive,  much,  to 
the  amusement  of  these  mischievous  boys. 
It  was  in  vain  that  Annie  joined  with  Mrs., 
Banks  in  trying  to  convince  her  little  cousins 
that  he  was  a  poor  harmless  old  man,  for,  on 
the  other  hand,  Alfred  and  Frank  read  them 
awful  stories  of  enchanters  and  such  people,, 
and  told  them  that  he  was  one  of  them,  and 
that  he  was  only  trying  to  cheat  Annie  and 
Tommy,  and  get  them  into  his  house  to  work 
his  magic  spells  upon  them.  They  quoted 
with  great  effect  the  story  of  the  spider  and 
the  fly,  and  from  hearing  these  things  reiter- 
ated so  often,  even  Clara,  Lizzie,  and  Fannie 
were  not  entirely  free  from  suspicion  of  him, 
22 


CHAPTEE    XII. 

SOCXN"  after  this  the  little  gardeners,  when 
they  came  to  their  work,  were  greatly  as- 
tonished at  finding  some  new  plants,  which 
"nobody  had  planted,"  growing  in  Annie 
and  Tommy's  bed.  They  were  not  in  bloom 
yet,  but  full  of  buds  which  would  soon  open. 
Mrs.  Banks  was  called  to  look  at  them  and 
say  whether  they  could  be  weeds  which  had 
sprung  up  so  suddenly  since  the  Saturday 
before. 

"  111  weeds  grow  apace,  Annie,  you 
know,"  she  answered,  smiling  as  she  fol- 
lowed them  to  the  spot.  "  But  this  is  no 
weed,  though  not  a  very  rare  plant  either — 
suppose  you  call  Uncle  Lemuel,  my  dears, 
and  I  expect  he  can  tell  you  a  great  deal 
about  it.  I  dare  say  the  old  man  intended 
a  pleasant  surprise." 

"He  says  he  will  come  directly  and  see 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  255 

it,"  said  Susy;  "but  on  his  honor  he  does 
not  know  who  planted  them." 

The  old  gardener  came  up  now,  following 
little  Alice,  to  whom  he  was  saying : 

"No,  indeed,  Miss  Alice!  'Twasn't  me 
done  it,  I  kin  assure  you,  miss;  but  I  spec 
there's  mighty  few  flowers  I  don'  know  de 
names  of,  so  I'll  soon  tell  you  what  dey  air. 
Lor !  now,  wherever  dey  come  from,  its  only 
what  dey  call  Canterbury  bells  after  all !" 
he  added,  leaning  on  his  spade  and  looking 
contemptuously  down.  "Its  a  right  down 
pretty  little  flower  dough,  only  I  never 
plants  'um  'case  anybody  tall  ken  raise  'um. 
My  ole  missus  now  used  to  be  kind  a  fond 
of  'um,  and  I  rized  the  beautifullest  ones 
long  as  she  lived,  but  they'se  growed  so 
common  since,  all  de  poor  folks  has  even 
tuck  to  planting  'um  that  I  done  give  up, 
and  dere  ain't  been  one  'bout  dis  place  for 
years.  I  wonder  now,  whar  de  name  o' 
sense  dese  here  did  come  from  sure  enough  ?" 

"Alfred  or  Frank  must  have  done  it," 
said  Fannie. 

"  That  they  must,  and  I'll   go   and   ask 


256  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

them  again,"  exclaimed  Henry,  as  ne  ran  to 
the  house  to  cross-question  the  older  boys, 
who  had  pleaded  laziness  as  an  excuse  for 
not  coming  out  that  morning,  to  help  to 
work,  as  they  had  been  doing  lately  quite 
regularly,  and  this  made  the  girls  still  more 
suspicious  of  them. 

"  Tut,  tut,  tut,  old  Jack  and  the  bean- 
stalk," replied  Alfred,  laughing  heartily  as 
he  followed  Henry.  "  So  you  think  Frank 
and  I  are  fairies  who  can  make  flowers 
spring  up  by  just  looking  on  the  ground. 
No,  no !  that's  even  beyond  our  powers ; 
but  we  will  go  and  see  if  we  can  make  them 
open  their  mouths  wide,  and  tell  us  at  once 
where  they  sprung  from." 

"  I  don't  see,  after  all,  that  it's  any  more 
wonderful  than  the  strange  freaks  the  HOB 
has  been  playing  off  lately,"  said  Frank. 

"No,  but  that  we  could  give  old  Jerry 
Thrip  the  credit  of,  you  •  know ;  whereas  this 
is  plainly  the  work  of  fairies,  and  is  very 
strange  indeed,"  replied  Alfred,  delighted  at 
another  opportunity  of  mystifying  the  child 
ren  and  servants. 


THE  CANTERBUKY  BELLS.  257 

Even  good  placid  Mrs.  Banks  said  it  was 
very  strange,  and  the  servants  and  children 
agreed  that  there  certainly  must  be  fairies 
or  witches  at  work  about  the  place,  and 
there  was  no  use  denying  it. 

"What  are  faiwies,  sister  Annie,"  asked 
little  Tommy  as  he  listened  to  this  solution 
of  the  mystery. 

"Well,  the  story-books  say  they  are  little 
people  dressed  in  green,  I  believe,  Tommy, 
who  dance  by  the  light  of  the  moon,  and  fly 
about  doing  all  manner  of  strange  things ; 
nobody  knows  how." 

"  "Where  do  they  live — up  in  heaven  ?" 

"  Oh !  no,  Tom,"  said  Alfred ;  "  they  only 
mount  a  broomstick  now  and  then,  to  sweep 
cobwebs  from  the  sky." 

"  How  tan  they  do  that,  I  wonder?"  said 
the  child,  looking  up  earnestly  to  the  far-off 
sky.  "  Do  they  have  tobwebs  up  there  ?  If  I 
was  to  det  up  so  high  I'd  ask  the  wittle 
angels  to  let  me  in." 

"And  they'd  take  you  for  one  of  them- 
selves and  do  it  certainly,"  replied  Alfred, 

struck  bv  the  little  fellow's  angelic  beauty  as 
22* 


258  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

he  stood  there  on  tiptoe,  with  his  large  blue 
eyes  wide  open,  and  his  coral  lips  parted, 
showing  two  rows  of  little  dazzling  white 
teeth,  while  his  auburn  ringlets  fell  in  rich 
masses  on  his  dimpled  shoulders,  contrasting 
with  their  whiteness  and  with  his  little  blue 
slip. 

"  Oh !  how  I  wish  they  would,"  he  ex- 
claimed turning  eagerly  to  Alfred.  "  I  should 
like  to  be  a  wittle  angel !" 

"  Tommy,  Tommy,  darling  little  brother, 
please  don't  say  that,  it  almost  frightens  me," 
said  Annie. 

"Well,  I  won't,  sister;  but  please  tell  me 
why?  an't  it  very,  very  dood  to  be  an 
angel?" 

"Yes!  oh  yes!  but  not  yet,  Tommy.  I 
couldn't  let  you  go  even  to  be  an  angel  just 
yet,"  said  Annie,  clasping  him  tightly  in  her 
arms,  her  eyes  filling  with  tears  at  the  thought 
of  losing  him. 

"  I  wouldn't  like  to  leave  my  sister  Annie 
either ;  but  if  they  would  take  us  both,  sis- 
ter, wouldn't  that  be  nice  ?" 

"  Mamma  and  Alice,  Tommy !  could  we 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  259 

leave  them?  It  would  make  them  cry  if 
they  were  to  come  home  and  not  find  us 
here." 

"  Yes,  but  sister!"  said  Tommy  very  ear- 
nestly. "  Sister  Alice  told  me  may  be  she 
never  would  tome  back  any  more,  and  that 
if  she  didn't,  she  hoped  she  wo  aid  do  to 
heaven  where  the  angels  live  with  Q-od,  and 
that  would  be  her  home  then,  and  you  know 
that  mamma  says  that  Grod  took  Papa  to  his 
heavenly  home ;  so  hadn't  all  of  us  better  do 
there  too  ?" 

Annie  could  not  answer,  for  her  voice  was 
choked  with  the  tears  she  found  so  hard  to 
keep  from  flowing :  she  bent  her  head  there- 
fore, in  silence,  and  commenced  preparing  a 
place  for  some  seed  she  held  in  her  hand 
while  one  or  two  quiet  drops  watered  the 
spot. 

Alfred  watched  her  for  a  few  moments 
with  his  countenance  unusually  softened  and 
grave,  then  turning  abruptly  to  little  Tommy, 
he  picked  him  up  and  tossed  him  over  his 
shoulder,  exclaiming: 


260  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Come,  sir !  no  more  of  that  talk  here,  if 
you  please.  Here  I'll  just  make  you  a  coat 
of  green  grass  and  send  you  off  to  fairy-land, 
and  if  you  choose  you  may  take  the  queen 
of  the  fairies  for  your  little  wife." 

"You  tan't  make  me  a  toat  of  gween 
gwass,  and  I  don't  want  to  do  to  faiwy-land, 
for  I  don't  know  where  that  is,"  answered 
Tommy. 

"  Come,  then,  and  let  me  tell  you  about 
the  fairies,  those  wonderful  little  people ;  and 
I'm  sure  you'll  want  to  go  and  see  for  your- 
self all  the  marvels  of  fairy-land.  In  the 
first  place  they  are  very,  very  small,  not  much 
bigger  than  the  end  of  your  little  thumb,  and 
they  live  down  deep  in  the  cowslip  bell,  or 
some  other  pretty  flower  ;  and  while  the  sun 
shines  hot  in  the  day,  they  stay  there  enjoy- 
ing the  cool  shade,  and  the  sweet  odor  of  the 
flowers,  overhearing  all  we  big  people  say, 
and  planning  how  they'll  play  tricks  on  us 
when  we've  gone  away.  They  take  all  their 
naps  in  the  day  time,  too,  and  come  stealing 
out  at  night  to  dance  by  the  light  of  the 
moon,  or  the  glow-worm's  taper. 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  261 

"Do  they?  then  I'll  watch,  for  'em  some 
night  when  the  moon  is  shining." 

"  Oh  !  that  would  never  do  I"  said  Alfred 
with  mock  gravity.  "  The  fairies  don't  like 
to  be  watched,  and  the  fairy  queen  might 
come  by  and  catch  you  up  in  her  little 
coach  and  carry  you  off  to  fairy -land  sure 
enough."^ 

"  How  bid  is  her  toach,  and  what  is  it 
made  of  ?"  asked  Tommy. 

"  They  say  that  sometimes  she  rides  upon 
the  thistle-down  when  she  is  in  a  great 
hurry ;  but  I  suppose  on  ordinary  occasions 
a  very  small  golden  pumpkin  would  do,  with 
grasshoppers  for  her  steeds.  Now  I  know 
you'd  like  to  take  Katy-did's  place  and  drive 
them,  wouldn't  you  ?" 

"  I  should  like  to  see  them,  and  I  hope  we 
will  find  some  in  our  Canterbury  bells  when 
they  bloom,"  replied  Tommy. 

All  day  the  children  talked  about  Annie 
and  Tommy's  strange  flowers,  and  every 
morning  ran  eagerly  to  see  their  bloom. 
Great  was  the  joy  of  all  when,  at  length,  the 
buds  began  to  open,  and  the  graceful  bells, 


262  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

some  of  deep  blue,  some  paler,  and  some 
white,  hung  on  the  slender  stalks.  The 
beautiful  "  fairy  bells/'  as  they  called  them, 
almost  made  the  children  in  their  admiration 
forget  even  old  Jerry  Thrip 

The  next  time  they  met  at  sunset  on  the 
"  Mistletoe  Hill,"  after  the  flowers  had 
bloomed,  Annie  brought  a  little  sprig  to 
Mrs.  Banks,  saying: 

"  "We  must  make  this  an  emblem  of  some- 
thing, Mrs.  Banks,  and  I  have  brought  it  to 
ask  you  to  find  a  name  and  motto  for  me." 

The  old  lady  smiling,  took  the  flower  in 
her  hand  and  said,  as  she  examined  it  thought- 
fully : 

"  Let  me  see !  here  is  white  for  love,  and 
pale  blue  for  peace ;  first  separately,  then 
blended  in  one  bell.  And  here  is  humility's 
deeper  shade,  with  the  faint  lilac  tinge  for  gen- 
tleness ;  and  all  growing  together  on  the  same 
stem  like  members  of  the  same  family.  The 
ringing  of  such  bells  would  make  sweet 
music  in  the  house,  you  may  be  sure.  Sup- 
pose then  we  call  it  Family  Harmony.  Two 
very  pretty  verses  occur  to  me  as  being  ap- 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.^  263 

prcpriate  for  the  motto.  You  can  take 
both  or  choose  between  them  as  you  like 
best.  The  first  is  from  the  1st  Epistle  of  St. 
Peter :  *  Finally  be  ye  all  of  one  mind,  hav- 
ing compassion  one  of  another ;  love  as 
brethren,  be  pitiful,  be  courteous.'  The 
other  one  is  from  the  12th  chapter  of 
Eomansf  '  Be  kindly  affectioned  one  towards 
another,  in  honor  preferring  one  another.'  " 

{'But  Mrs.  Banks,"  said  Clara,  with  a 
slight  hesitation  in  her  manner.  "Love 
seems  to  form  a  part  of  every  motto,  and  we 
have  learned  so  many  texts  already  about  it, 
that  I  think  we  are  having  too  much  on  the 
same  subject." 

"  We  began,  my  child,  with  the  admission 
that  Love  helped  all  the  other  graces  to 
grow,  so  no  wonder  it  has  a  place  in  every 
motto.  Love  must  mingle  in  whatever  we 
do  or  say  to  others  if  we  would  be  the  child- 
ren of  Him  of  whom  it  is  said :  '  God  is 
Love.'" 


CHAPTEE    XIII. 

"  I'LL  be  bound  for  Annie.  Nothing  can 
put  old  Granny  Grunt  out  of  her  head  when 
Saturday  afternoon  comes  round,"  said  Lizzie. 

"  No,  indeed.  She  ought  to  have  her  pic- 
ture taken,  and  be  called  little  Mother  Mer- 
ciful, with  that  long  poky  bonnet  on,  and 
walking  so  demurely,  holding  Tommy  by  one 
hand,  and  her  basket  of  provisions  in  the 
other,  never  looking  to  the  right  or  the  left, 
till  she  reaches  Granny's  door ;  and  then  lis- 
tening with  a  grave,  pitying  face  all  the  time 
she  is  grunting  out  complaints  about  that 
dreadful  rheumatiz,  'dat  commences  at  de 
right  arm,  comes  clean  all  down  dat  side  till 
it  reach  de  little  toe,  den  begins  again  to  travel 
up  de  little  toe  of  de  oder  foot,  and  never 
stops  coming  upards  till  it  rech  de  lef  shoul- 
der, and  come  out  at  de  little  lef  finger/  "  said 
Alfred,  laughing  and  mimicking  the  voice 
and  manner  of  the  old  woman.  "Never 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS  265 

mind,  little  cousin,  I'll  go  with  you  this  time, 
and  take  jour  basket,  and  make  you  smile  a 
l.ttle  every  now  and  then." 

"  Thank  you,  Cousin  Alfred,"  replied  An- 
nie good-humoredly,  "  you  might  get  your 
own  picture  taken,  as  Father  Condescension,  if 
you  were  to  do  such  a  thing  as  that ;  so  I'd 
rather  not  trouble  you." 

"  Well  done,  Annie  !  I'm  glad  you  paid 
him  this  time  for  his  impertinence.  I  didn't 
know  you  had  so  much  spunk,"  said  Fannie 
laughing. 

"Here  is  your  basket,  Annie.  I  have  add- 
ed a  little  tea  and  light  bread  to  the  flour  and 
molasses  this  evening,  and  I  hope  Granny 
will  have  a  good  time  with  her  old  man," 
said  Mrs.  Banks,  coming  out  of  the  pantry 
with  the  well-filled  basket. 

"  Give  my  love  to  her,  Annie,  please,"  said 
Clara,  "  and  tell  her  I'll  come  to  see  her  soon. 
I  can't  go  this  evening,  though,  for  I  really 
don't  feel  like  it." 

"An't  you  ashamed,  Clara,  to  say  you 
don't  feel  like  doing  what  is  right?"  said 

Frank,  winking  towards  Annie. 
23 


266  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"Without  noticing  this,  Annie  quietly  tied 
her  sun-bonnet,  took  up  her  basket,  and  with 
little  Tommy  holding  her  hand,  walked  down 
to  the  quarter. 

Aunt  Mindy  was  very  old  and  infirm,  and 
had  gained  the  nick-name  of  Granny  Grunt, 
from  the  many  aches  and  pains  she  was  apt 
to  complain  of,  especially  "the  rheumatiz," 
of  which  Alfred  had  spoken.  She  was  sin- 
cerely pious,  though  rather  too  superstitious ; 
and  her  visions  and  dreams  afforded  great 
amusement  to  the  boys,  who  often  went  to 
hear  her  experience,  which  they  afterwards 
ridiculed.  Her  husband,  "  01  man  Adam," 
as  she  called  him,  was  a  short,  stoutly-made 
man,  with  a  very  black  complexion,  quiet 
and  humble  in  his  manners.  He  belonged  to 
a  gentleman  on  a  neighboring  plantation ;  so 
the  old  couple  only  met  on  Saturday  even- 
ings, and  parted  again  early  Monday  morn- 
ing. Their  devotion  to  each  other  was  really 
affecting.  Aunt  Mindy  was  the  oldest,  and 
in  her  love  there  mingled  a  good  deal  of  the 
patronizing  and  the  condescending,  although 
it  was  sincere  and  warm  for  all  that ;  while 


THE   CANTERBURY   BELI  S.  26  f 

Adam,  on  his  part,  held  his  better  half  in  the 
highest  veneration,  admiring  her  gift  of  the 
gab  especially,  and  believing  her  visions  the 
most  wonderful  with  which  a  mortal  creature 
was  ever  favored.  She  was  always  ready 
with  a  clean  frock  and  turban  to  greet  him 
when  he  came  on  Saturday  evening,  her  face 
showing  plainly  the  real  unaffected  happiness 
she  felt.  Some  nice  little  dainty  dish  would 
be  set  out  on  the  table  for  his  refreshment, 
and  by  this  a  chair  containing  a  clean  suit  of 
clothing,  which  he  was  expected  to  put  on  as 
soon  as  he  had  taken  his  repast.  Then  they 
sat  down  to  talk  over  the  week's  occurrences, 
Aunt  Mindy  having  much  experience  to  tell, 
and  good  advice  to  give  her  old  man,  both  as 
to  his  spiritual  and  temporal  condition.  After 
this  they  sang  hymns  and  had  prayers  to- 
gether. Annie  scarcely  ever  failed  to  call 
and  inquire  after  their  health,  bringing  Mrs. 
Banks's  weekly  contribution  to  their  comforts 
and  reading  them  a  chapter  in  the  Bible. 
After  she  had  gone,  quite  a  number  of  color- 
ed friends  would  drop  in  to  enjoy  Aunt 
Mindy's  good  cheer,  which  she  dispensed  on 


268  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

these  occasions  liberally,  and  to  wish  her  old 
man  and  herself  joy  on  their  meeting  again. 
The  door  was  wide  open  when  Annie  came 
this  evening,  and  the  old  couple  were  seated 
on  low  stools  opposite  to  each  other  near  the 
entrance,  while  further  back  on  a  long  low 
bench  placed  against  the  bedstead,  were  three 
visitors.  Aunt  Mindy  was  leaning  forward, 
with  her  pipe  in  her  hand,  singing  one  of  her 
favorite  hymns : 

"  Yes,  my  body's  lyin'  down  a  mouldin'  in  the  clay, 

But  my  spirit's  a  marching  home. 
0  brothers  !  won't  you  help  me  to  sing  and  to  pray  ? 
O  sisters  !  won't  you  help  me  to  sing  and  to  pray  ? 
For  my  body's  lyin'  down  a  mouldin'  in  the  clay  ; 
Yes,  my  body's  lyin'  down  a  mouldin'  in  the  clay, 

But  my  spirit's  a  marching  home. 
And  if  you  get  there  before  I  do, 
Be  sure  and  say  I'm  a  coming,  too." 

' '  Good-evening,  Aunt  Mindy.  How  do  you 
and  Uncle  Adam  do  this  evening  ?  Tommy 
and  I  have  come  to  inquire  about  you,  and 
you  see,  Mrs.  Banks  has  done  her  part,  too," 
said  Annie,  smiling  kindly  as  she  handed  the 
basket  in. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  269 

"  God  bless  you,  my  dear  young  Miss,  and 
that  sweet  little  Master,  too.  Much  obleged 
to  you,  Miss  Annie.  I  feels  de  pains  mon- 
strous sharp,  sometimes ;  but  I  jes  been  a  tell- 
in'  Adam  dat  de  pains  we  suffers  here  is 
mighty  little  after  all,  when  you  comes  to 
calculate  de  good  what's  a  coming  when  we 
gets  shut  of  dese  ole  tabernucles  o'  clay  dats 
shakin'  and  totterin'  all  de  time,  like  dey  want 
to  give  notice  dey  an't  got  long  to  tarry. 
Miss  Annie,  honey,  I  ben  thinking  a  heap  all 
dis  week  'bout  your  ma  and  dat  precious, 
beautiful  child,  Miss  Alice;  and,  says  I  to 
myself,  it  make  no  deiference  what  happen  to 
em  after  all,  for  dey  got  de  promise  of  de 
Master  that  He  never  guine  to  forsake  'em, 
and  'pend  upon  it,  honey,  he'll  keep  his  word ! 
And  if  deys  in  dis  worle,  or  de  tother  one,  he 
wi-d  em  all  de  same — septs,  up  dere  dey  free 
from  all  trouble,  and  never  gwine  to  shed  any 
more  tears !  Oh  !  when  I  studies  'bout  dat 
good  country,  seems  like  I  couldn't  stay  here 
no  longer,  any  how ;  den  dere  comes  some- 
times a  voice,  and  says,  Mindy  I  Mindy  I 

After  I  done  lef  my  home,  my  father's  house, 
23* 


270  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

and  de  company  of  angels,  to  live  in  dat  wick- 
ed  worle,  grieving  all  de  time  at  de  wickness 
of  it,  and  den  suffering  cruel  torments  and 
death  to  save  your  soul,  and  buy  you  away 
from  de  Evil  One,  you  gwine  to  grumble  now 
'bout  finishing  de  day's  work  before  you? 
Little  enough  I  give  you  to  do,  any  how,  and 
it  seems  like  you  might  do  dat  wid  a  good 
will,  and  wait  my  time  fore  you  wants  to  wear 
de  crown  sted  of  de  cross.  Den  I  feels  sham- 
ed of  myself,  and  says  yes,  Master,  I  is  a 
mighty  wicked,  grumbling  ole  creetnr,  show 
nough ;  but  I  gwine  to  try  to  do  better,  and 
spend  de  breath  what's  lef  me  in  praising  and 
serving  dee,  and  I  willin'  to  stay  here  jes  as 
long  as  you  please.  Now,  Miss  Annie,  please 
to  read  'bout  de  prodigal  son,  cause  dere,  on 
dat  bench,  is  poor  Moses  Roy,  come  to  hear 
talkin'  and  readin'  agin  dis  evening,  cause  he 
say  what  he  hearn  last  time  make  him  feel 
like  he  want  to  hear  some  more  'bout  Jesus 
Christ ;  and  I  been  trying  to  make  him  blieve 
what  is  de  truth  'bout  himself,  dat  if  he  only 
willin'  to  give  up  his  sins  and  turn  back  from 
de  ways  he's  ten  gwine  on  in,  dere's  One 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  271 

ready,  willin'  and  waitin'  to  bid  him  welcome 
and  help  him  on  de  way  home ;  now,  can't 
you  tell  him  de  same,  and  read  it  to  him  too, 
out  de  word?" 

Annie  looked  in  the  direction  to  which 
Aunt  Mindy  pointed,  and  was  touched  very 
deeply  to  see  the  sorrowful  yet  earnest  and 
inquiring  look  with  which  poor  Moses  was 
regarding  her.  He  was  a  youth  of  nineteen 
or  twenty,  shabbily  dressed,  with  his  uncomb- 
ed hair  knotted  over  his  head,  and  his  whole 
person  looking  slovenly  and  neglected ;  his 
countenance  was  usually  dull  and  heavy,  and 
when  questioned,  his  answers,  hitherto,  had 
exhibited  not  only  total  ignorance,  but  appa- 
rent apathy  of  mind  ;  so  that  although  he  had 
lately  joined  Uncle  Adam  several  times  when 
he  met  him  on  his  way  to  Aunt  Mindy's,  and 
sat  there  during  the  reading,  Annie  had  not 
thought  of  his  being  attracted  by  any  serious 
motive,  and  was  accordingly  surprised  as  well 
as  gratified  at  Aunt  Mindy's  account.  When 
she  had  finished  reading  the  chapter  the  old 
-woman  requested,  she  tried  to  explain  it, 
saying : 


272  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Now,  you  see,  Moses,  that  Aunt  Mindy 
was  right ;  for  as  soon  as  the  father  saw  his 
poor  son,  who  had  gone  so  far  away  from  him, 
and  spent  all  his  money,  and  gotten  into  bad 
company,  coming  back  to  him,  though  he  was 
a  long  way  off,  he  went  to  meet  him,  and  fell 
on  his  neck  and  kissed  him,  and  that's  just 
the  way  with  God  and  us ;  as  soon  as  we 
want  to  give  up  our  bad  ways  and  do  right,  he 
is  always  glad  to  help  us  ;  so  if  you  want  to 
come  to  Jesus,  he'll  never  turn  away  from 
you  —  only  pray  to  him  to  forgive  you  all 
your  sins,  and  teach  you  how  to  serve  him, 
and  he'll  give  you  his  Holy  Spirit  to  make 
your  heart  all  new  and  holy,  and  prepare  you 
to  go  to  heaven  when  you  die." 

"Yes,  Moses,  onlyjes  turn  your  face  de 
right  way  in  good  earnest,  and  pend  upon  it 
dat  ole  Satan  never  gwine  to  get  de  victry 
long  as  you  keep  on  askin'  de  Gracious  Mas- 
ter to  'liver  you  out  o'  his  hands.  Now,  come 
tell  Miss  Annie  all  'bout  how  you'se  ben  try- 
ing to  do  de  way  she  telled  us  all  out  de  good 
book,  and  how  sorrowful  you  feel  cause  you 
couldn't  do  it,"  said  Aunt  Mindy. 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  273 

Tears  were  rolling  down  poor  Moses'  cheeks, 
and  putting  his  hands  to  his  face  he  wept 
aloud.  "Please,  Miss  Annie,  I  know  I'se  no- 
thing but  a  poor  nigger  boy,"  he  said,  "  what 
no  body  don't  think  nuttin  'bout,  but  somefir 
in  me  seem  to  say  if  Jesus  love  every  body  in 
de  worle,  and  died  for  every  single  soul,  like  I 
ben  hearn  tell  down  here,  may  be  he'll  think 
'bout  me  too,  ef  I  pray  like  Aunt  Mindy  and 
Uncle  Adam,  and  tries  de  way  dey  say,  to  do 
de  very  bes  I  kin  ;  but  I  never  knowed  afore 
dat  dis  black  skin  wasn't  de  worst  o'  me,  dat 
deres  somefin  sides  dat  to  make  God  and 
every  body  in  de  worle  hate  me ;  for  I  an't 
nothin'  but  black  inside  and  out,  like  de  ole 
debil  hisself.  When  I  fust  seed  you  come 
down  here,  I  was  visiting  some  of  de  people 
here,  and  we  listened  roun  de  house,  and  all 
of  us  laughed  at  de  preachin'  and  prayin'  in 
Aunt  Mindy 's  cabin,  but  I  thought  I'd  jes 
come  in  and  hear  too  what  'twas  all  'bout ; 
an  den,  it  seem  mighty  kine  in  de  young  Miss 
to  come  down  so  regular  to  see  we  colored 
people,  and  I  kine  o'  liked  to  come  and  jes  sat 
dere,  even  ef  1  went  to  sleep,  for  I  never 


274  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

hearn  all  de  things  you  telled  'bout,  and 
didn't  know  what  'em  mean,  tell  I  hearn 
Aunt  Mindy  keep  seyin  over  'bout  Jesus 
lovin'  all  de  worle  so  much,  and  dyin'  on  de 
cross  to  save  every  body ;  and  you  read  dat 
chapter  how  it  sey  dey  drove  nails  into  his 
flesh,  and  a  good  'deal  more,  yet  he  love  de 
worle  all  de  same,  and  want  to  get  people  to 
come  to  heaven.  I  kep  thinking  how  strange 
it  was,  until  it  seemed  like  I  want  to  love  him 
and  pray  to  him  as  I  done  tell  you  at  fust ; 
but  my  heart  so  black  and  bad,  'tan't  fit  for 
nothin." 

" Don't  you  want  a  new  one,  then,  Moses?" 
asked  Annie. 

"  Yes,  Miss,  indeed  I  does  I" 

"  Well,  Grod  has  promised,  if  we  ask  him, 
to  make  our  hearts  all  new  again.  ISTone  of 
us  have  good  hearts !  Every  body  is  very 
wicked,  until  God  changes  their  natures,  and 
then  we  have  to  keep  asking  him  afterwards 
to  keep  us  holy,  or  we  should  fall  back  into 
our  old  ways.  ISTow,  I'll  read  you  about 
the  thief  who  was  crucified  with  Jesus,  and 
you'll  see  there's  no  body  too  sinful  to  be  for- 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  275 

given."  As  she  read,  she  explained  to  Moses 
the  meaning  of  all  the  words,  and  he  seemed 
greatly  comforted  and  encouraged  by  the 
chapter.  Aunt  Mindy  added  every  now  and 
then  a  word  of  exhortation,  too. 

"  Now,  mine,  Moses,"  she  said  at  last,  seem- 
ing afraid  he  was  going  to  find  comfort  too 
soon,  "  for  all  de  way  is  very  plain  and  sure 
while  you'se  strivin'  to  keep  right  in  it — 
'taint  sich  a  very  easy  road  to  travel  nother. 
You  got  to  keep  watchin'  and  prayin'  les,  ef 
you  don  mine,  de  bridegroom  will  come  at 
las  and  fine  de  virgin  widout  any  oil  in  his 
lamp." 

Annie  found  now  that  Tommy  was  getting 
tired  and  sleepy,  so  she  rose  to  go. 

"Grood-by,  Moses,"  she  said,  "I  will  ask 
God  to  bless  you,  and  teach  you  to  know  how 
to  serve  him,  and  I  hope  He  will  make  you 
very  good  and  happy.  Don't  forget  to  keep 
on  praying  for  yourself,  and  believe  in  the 
Lord  Jesus  all  the  time." 

"  Thank  you,  Miss  Annie.  I  gwine  to  try 
wid  all  my  might,  Miss,  to  get  to  heaven.  I 
know  dat,  and  ef  prayin'  can  take  me  dere, 


276  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

my  mouth,  an't  gwine  to  be  sliet  much  o*  de 
time,"  he  answered. 

"When  she  offered  her  hand  to  Aunt  Mindy, 
the  old  woman  took  it  and  held  it  in  both 
of  hers,  while  she  looked  up  to  heaven  and 
fervently  ejaculated :  "  God  bless  you,  my 
dear,  dear  young  Missus !  Miss  Annie,"  she 
added,  "  have  you  ever  noticed  o'  nights,  when 
de  stars  is  shinin,  how  some  is  very  big  and 
bright,  and  others  little  and  faint,  yet  dey  all 
shine  some  ?  I  'spose  I  kin  be  like  de  littlest 
ones,  any  how;  but  you  mus  try  to  keep 
shinin  brighter  and  brighter  tell  you'se  givin 
all  de  light  you  possibly  kin.  Ef  you  please, 
Miss,  could  you  take  dese  fresh  eggs  to  divide 
'tween  you  and  Miss  Clara  and  dis  little  Mas- 
ter, and  tell  Miss  Clara  I  try  not  to  think 
hard  'bout  her  not  coming  to  see  me  some- 
times wid  you,  but  I'se  disappointed  every 
time  you  comes  widout  her,-  an'  she  ben  promi- 
sin1  so  long,  too." 

Uncle  Adam  rose  up  to  make  a  respectful 
obeisance,  and  Annie  returned  home,  feeling 
well  repaid  for  the  trouble  she  had  taken  to 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  277 

visit  the  old  people,  and  full  of  interest  in  the 
case  of  poor  Moses. 

Her  cousins  had  been  walking  together  on 
the  lawn  since  she  left  them,  chatting  in  a 
sprightly,  animated  tone. 

"Well,  Lizzie,"  said  Fannie,  "  I  hope  you 
got  that  great,  long  lesson  in  Ancient  Geo- 
graphy for  Mr.  McLeod  at  last.  I  wouldn't 
be  so  bookish  and  proper  as  you  are  growing 
for  a  good  deal." 

"Umph.1  it's  time  for  me  to  be  growing 
dignified  and  to  study  up,  Miss  Fannie.  Ee- 
member  I'm  almost  grown." 

"  Well,  young  ladies,  I'm  pleased  to  find 
that  Mr.  McLeod  can  make  you  toe  the  mark 
rather  better  than  poor  Miss  Binns  did,"  said 
Alfred. 

"  Pugh  !  Miss  Binns  doesn't  command  any 
body's  respect,  and  her  lessons  are  pretty 
much  humbuggeries,  all  of  them;"  said  Lizzie. 

"Well  now,  Lizzie,  for  my  part,  I'm  really 
attached  to  Miss  Binns — bad  as  she  thinks 
me — she  never  gives  me  any  trouble  about 
studying ;  the  less  you  take  the  smarter  she 

thinks  you,  and  that  suits  me  exactly,  a  great 
24 


273  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

deal  better  than  to  hear  Mr.  McLeod  roar  out : 
'  Thart's  a  very  bard  lesson,  Miss  Farnnie, 
and  you  will  plase  to  take  more  trouble  to 
prepare  yourself  before  you  come  to  school.' 
I  don't  know  what  he  is  going  to  say  to  me  on 
Monday,'  said  Fannie. 

"  0  you  lazy  little  thing !"  answered 
Lizzie  ;  "to  like  Miss  Binns  just  because  you 
don't  have  to  take  any  trouble  about  your 
lessons.  I  wonder  what  you  go  to  school  at 
all  for?" 

"  Now,  Clara,  just  let  me  tell  you  all  about 
Miss  Binn's  school,  and  see  if  you  would  not 
agree  with  me  that  it's  a  great  deal  nicer 
than  Mr.  McLeod's.  In  the  first  place,  Miss 
Hetty  Jane  Binns  is  an  old  maid,  stiff, 
wrinkled,  and  most  as  proper  as  Lizzie  there. 
She  wears  a  brown  merino  dress  in  the  win- 
ter, and  purple  calicoes  in  the  summer,  a 
black  silk  apron,  with  two  egg-shaped 
pockets,  a  gold  watch  with  a  very  fine  chain, 
and  black  prunella  shoes.  On  each  side  of 
her  face  is  a  little  stiff  short  bunch  of  curls, 
and  she  sits  in  a  straight-backed  high  chair, 
with  a  small  square  red  table  before  her. 


THE   CANTEKBUKY  BELLS.  279 

On  this  table  are  laid  in  the  same  spot  every 
day,  and  just  as  even  as  they  can  lie  side 
by  side,  a  flat,  yellow  ruler,  a  red  lead  pencil, 
a  penknife,  and  a  square  piece  of  india-rub- 
ber. Back  of  all  these  is  the  little  brass  bell 
that  tingles  whenever  we  make  a  noise  or  do 
any  thing  Miss  Binns  doesn't  like.  Exactly 
in  the  middle  of  the  table  is  a  little  bundle 
wrapped  in  a  bird's-eye  napkin,  and  it  always 
has  the  same  things  in  it — from  one  year  to 
another — two  small  rolls  and  a  little  round 
sugar-cake.  "We  girls  don't  believe  Miss 
Binns  could  eat  any  thing  else  at  twelve 
o'clock  if  she  was  to  try.  Then  there  is  a 
little  space  left  on  the  table  for  the  book 
when  she  is  hearing  a  lesson  ;  but  sometimes 
Miss  Binns  sits  up  there  herself,  and  puts 
her  feet  in  the  chair,  I  suppose  to  see  us  all 
better.  At  the  back  of  her  chair  is  a  large 
blackboard,  and  on  this  is  written  always 
two  or  three  sentences  like  these  to  keep  us 
in  mind,  ( Order  is  heaven's  first  law,' 
'Knowledge  is  power,'  'Time  is  more  pre- 
cious than  gold' ;  and  when  the  girls  do  any 
thing  very,  very  naughty,  their  names  are 


280  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

written  with  what  they've  done  bad  under 
these  sentences,  for  people  to  see  who  come 
into  the  school-room  when  we  are  not  there 
— for  she  rents  the  room  under  the  church, 
where  they  have  prayer-meetings.  But  some- 
times the  girls  play  her  a  trick  by  getting  in 
before  any  body  comes,  and  rubbing  every 
thing  out  or  putting  her  own  name  up.  In 
the  middle  of  the  room  there  hangs  a  little 
orrery  with  dear  little  green  and  blue  and 
yellow  balls  for  suns  and  moons.  And  on 
the  wall  are  one  or  two  large  maps  and  some 
charts  with  every  kind  of  shaped  figures; 
she  calls  these  geometrical  charts.  Two  tall 
slender  sticks  stand  under  these,  that  look  as 
if  they  were  meant  to  whip  us ;  but  they 
an't — they  are  only  pointers.  Well,  if  Miss 
Binn's  is  in  a  good  humor  after  she  has 
opened  school,  she  looks  round  and  smiles 
at  us  all  and  says :  l  Now,  my  dears,  fold 
your  hands  upon  your  breasts  and  see  how 
still  you  can  keep.  There!  now  you  look 
just  like  little  angels !  Fannie,  be  a  good 
girl  too.  Lizzie  has  turned  round  and  no- 
body would  know  her  for  the  same  girl. 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS,  281 

I  have  made  up  my  mind  not  to  be  good, 
but  to  have  some  fun,  so  I  look  at  the  girls, 
say,  '  Yes,  Ma'am,'  very  gravely,  and  get  up 
and  turn  all  round  and  round,  making  all 
the  fuss  I  can  in  doing  it.  Every  body 
laughs  except  Miss  Binns,  she  is  ready  to 
box  my  ears,  but  only  rings  the  bell  very 
loud  and  strikes  the  table  with  the  ruler,  till 
it  has  dents  in  it,  telling  the  school,  in  a  stern 
voice,  to  'be  still  T  Then  she  looks  at  me 
and  says :  '  Fannie  Forrest,  you  naughty  girl ! 
go  stand  in  the  floor,  and  hold  up  your  hand 
until  I  tell  you  to  take  it  down.' 

"  'I'd  like  to  know  what  in  the  world  / 
have  been  doing,  you  told  me  to  turn  right 
round,  and  I  did  it  —  I  can't  help  the  girls 
laughing,'  say  I,  with  a  very  persecuted  face J 
she  calls  me  to  her  then  and  says,  in  a  com 
passionate  kind  of  voice : 

"  '  Didn't  you  understand  what  I  meant, 
my  dear,  by  turning  round  ?  It's  what  they 
call  &  figure  of  speech  /' 

"I  look  very  simple,  and  pumping  up  two 
big  tears  into  my  eyes,  say : 

"  '  I  thought  I  did  turn  my  figure  round — • 
24* 


282  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

I  tried,  but  there  wasn't  much  room  between 
the  bench  and  the  desk.' 

"  '  Why,  my  dear,  don't  you  indeed  under- 
stand what  is  meant  by  a  figure  of  speech  ?  I 
must  try  to  explain  it  to  you.' 

"  The  girls  all  giggle  now,  and  Miss  Hetty 
tells  them  that  it  is  very  impolite  to  laugh  at 
people's  mistakes ;  that  if  they  were  to  go  to 
Paris,  nobody  would  laugh  at  them,  no  mat- 
ter what  bad  French  they  should  speak. 
Then  she  turns  to  me  again  and  says :  '  A 
figure  of  speech  is  employed  when  a  person 
makes  use  of  an  expression  that  means  some- 
thing quite  different  from  what  the  words 
would  seem  to  do  at  first.  For  instance,  sup- 
pose one  day  when  you  had  been  very 
naughty,  I  should  say  to  the  school  in  the 
evening,  "  Young  ladies,  Miss  Fannie  Forrest 
has  behaved  beautifully  to-day" — that  would 
be  a  figure  of  speech  which  is  called 
irony.  Do  you  think  you  understand  that 
now?' 

"  *  Yes,  ma'am,  I  expect  I  do.  It's  what 
we  children  call  telling  stories,  I  suppose. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  283 

But  I  did  not  know,  ma'am,  that  you  ever 
told  figures  of  speech  !' 

"  Miss  Binns  gives  a  funny  little  smile,  that 
looks  as  if  she  wasn't  very  much  pleased,  and 
says : 

"  '  Excuse  me,  my  dear  Fannie  ;  you  are 
usually  a  very  bright  little  girl.  But  really, 
to-day,  my  dear,  you  seem,  if  I  may  use  the 
expression,  you  seem  quite  stupid  /' 

"  '  I  have  never  been  in  the  habit  of  being 
called  stupid,  and  I'll  tell  mother  she  had 
better  keep  me  at  home,  if  I  am  so  stupid,' 
I  answer,  looking  very  sulky ;  and  Miss 
Binns  looks  frightened,  and  says : 

" '  I  did  not  mean,  my  dear,  that  you  ac- 
tually are  a  stupid  girl.  I  only  said  you 
seemed  so,  to-day.  You  know  that  I  said  first 
that  usually  you  are  very  bright.  I  think  you 
are  smart  enough,  my  child,  and  quite  a 
good-looking  little  girl,  too,  when  you  are 
good.  What  I  meant  by  turning  round  was 
turning  round  in  your  behavior ;  so  go  now 
to  your  seat  and  see  if  you  can  not  sit  up 
straight  and  fold  your  hands  like  one  of  my 
little  angels.  Mrs.  Smith  is  coming  in  pre- 


284  THE  CANTERBUKY  BELLS. 

sently  to  see  the  school,  and  if  you  behave 
well,  I  will  give  you  an  approbation-ticket  at 
the  close  of  school.' 

"Soon  after  this  there's  a  knock  at  the 
door,  and  we  all  sit  straight  and  clasp  our 
hands  upon  our  breasts,  with  our  books  lying 
open  before  us  on  the  desk.  A  lady  comes  in 
and  is  introduced  to  the  school  by  Miss 
Binns,  who  smiles  and  looks  highly  de 
lighted,  as  she  glances  round,  then  slyly  lets  a 
pin  fall  to  see  if  she  can  hear  it.  Mrs.  Smith 
stays  a  good  while,  and  we  all  listen  to  her 
conversation;  sometimes  she  tells  us  anec- 
dotes about  her  own  school-days  for  our  edi- 
fication. When  she's  gone,  Miss  Binns  says  : 

"  '  You  behaved  beautifully,  young  ladies  ; 
I  could  actually  hear  a  pin  fall  when  Mrs. 
Smith  came  in ;  it  was  so  still.' 

"  Then  she  calls  up  her  classes,  and  we 
none  of  us  know  our  lessons  very  well,  but 
she  is  in  too  good-humor  to  scold,  and  so  she 
tells  us  anecdotes  about  great  men — that  ( Dr. 
Franklin  said  if  he  was  a  shoe-black,  he'd  be 
the  best  one  in  the  world,'  for  instance ;  but 
as  she  has  told  them  very  often  before,  we 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  285 

know  them  all  by  heart,  and  I  try  to  remem- 
ber one  that  she  don't  happen  to  mention 
that  day,  and  say :  '  Wasn't  it  Sir  Isaac 
Newton,  ma'am,  that  used  to  be  so  occupied 
with  his  books  that  he  would  forget  to  go  to 
his  dinner  when  he  was  called  ?' 

"  '  Yes,  my  dear ;  where  did  you  read 
that?'  ' 

"  '  I  didn't  read  it ;  I  remembered  what 
you  told  me  once  about  him.' 

"  '  You  did  ?  Well  that's  being  a  good 
attentive  little  girl,  and  you  said  your  lesson 
pretty  well  too.' 

"I  toss  my  head  and  say:  'I  hardly 
looked  at  the  book.' 

"  '  You  didn't  ?  Well,  considering  Fannie 
Forrest  didn't  look  at  her  lesson,  young 
ladies,  she  said  it  remarkably  well,  and  I 
must  give  her  two  tickets  of  approbation  this 
evening,  one  for  her  lesson  and  one  for  her 
good  behavior.  I  have  a  school  with  a 
great  deal  of  talent  in  it.  Yes,  I  may  say 
that  though  I  have  taught  both  at  the  North 
and  the  South,  I  never  before  had  such  a 
talented  school.' 


286  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"'I  should  think,  ma'am,  it  might  then 
be  called  the  Augustine  Age  of  your  school; 
mightn't  it,  Miss  Binns  ?' 

"'Why,  Fannie! -did  you  think  of  that 
yourself,  my  dear  ?' 

"  '  Yes,  ma'am !' 

"  { It  is  very  smart,  indeed,  my  child.  I 
will  write  it  down  to  let  people  know  what 
a  talented  set  of  girls  I  have.  Yes,  it  may 
be  called  the  Augustine  Age  in  my  school  life. 
I  think  I  have  mentioned,  perhaps,  young 
ladies,  the  origin  of  this  expression ;  but  if 
any  of  you  do  not  remember,  hold  up  your 
hands.7 

"  "Well,  then,  in  the  evening  as  we  go  out 
of  the  room,  we  have  to  pass  by  Miss  Binns' 
chair,  and  all  who  are  to  get  approbation- 
tickets  hold  up  their  hands  when  they  make 
their  courtesy,  and  bid  good  evening;  and 
she  gives  them  a  little  piece  of  pink  or  blue 
paper,  cut  square,  and  pointed  all  round  in 
little  fine  points,  with  'Approbation'  written 
in  the  middle  of  it.  On  Fridays  we  have 
oral  instruction  in  geography  and  maps,  bio- 
graphy, (I  suppose  it  may  be  called,)  the  ele- 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  287 

ments  of  geography  and  astronomy.  "We  all 
stand  in  a  line  in  front  of  the  large  maps,  and 
Miss  Binns  puts  one  of  the  long  slender  rods 
in  our  hands  by  turns,  and  asks  us  to  point 
out  the  different  countries  and  cities  in  the 
world,  and  tell  what  productions  they  are 
remarkable  for ;  but  she  tells  us  first  herself-— 
we  only  repeat  after  her,  and  then  with  these 
long  sticks  we  sail  all  round  the  world  on 
the  maps.  Miss  Binns  holds  one  pointer  in 
her  own  hand  to  correct  our  mistakes,  if  we 
go  wrong,  or  to  tap  on  the  floor  with,  if  we 
are  disorderly.  The  biography,  as  Alfred 
calls  it,  consists  in  questions  put  to  the  whole 
school,  which  we  are  all  to  answer  together ; 
and  I  tell  you  we  do  make  a  noise  sometimes, 
talking  just  as  loud  as  we  can.  The  ques- 
tions are  such  as  these;  l  "Who  was  Benjamin 
Franklin  ?'  or  '  Who  was  General  Washing- 
ton?' 

" '  A  great  and  good  man.' 

"  '  Do  you  mean,  my  dears,  when  you  say 
a  great  and  good  man  that  he  had  a  great 
big  body  or  a  great  big  soul  ?' 

"  'A  great  big  soul.' 


288  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  '  Yes,  you  are  right ;  it  was  his  great  soul 
which  made  him.  so  remarkable.  What  has 
he  been  called  ?' 

"  '  The  Father  of  his  country.7 

"After  we  have  gone  through  General 
Washington  and  one  or  two  others,  she  asks  : 
'  Who  is  the  best  scholar  in  this  school  ?' 

"There  is  a  good,  quiet  little  girl  who 
never  does  wrong,  so  every  body  calls  out 
her  name :  '  Kebecca  Bliss.' 

"Miss  Binns  looks  at  her  and  smiles,  and 
then  says :  { And  now  tell  me  who  is  the 
worst.' 

"Sometimes,  indeed,  very  often  poor  'Fan- 
nie Forrest'  answers  to  this  character;  but 
sometimes  she  says : 

"'What  two  young  ladies  have  turned 
round  and  are  trying  -to  be  good  ?'  and  the 
girls  answer :  *  Lizzie  and  Fannie  Forrest.' 

"  Then  comes  our  geometry ;  we  have  to 
use  the  pointers  again  for  this,  to  point  out 
first  a  square  and  tell  how  many  sides  it  has, 
then  a  triangle,  a  pentagon,  hexagon,  hep- 
tagon, octagon,  etc.  Miss  Binns  has  a  little 
pasteboard  box,  besides,  full  of  pieces  of  dif- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  289 

ferent  colored  morocco,  cut  in  these  shapes, 
which  she  holds  up,  and  we  call  out  the 
names.  Then  there  are  prisms,  and  py- 
ramids, and  all  kinds  of  things,  cut  in  wood,, 
which  we  describe  too.  Last  of  all  comes 
the  astronomy,  which  we  love  dearly,  as  we 
have  to  wheel  the  little  orrery  round  and 
round  with  the  pointer,  and  tell  the  names 
of  the  little  colored  balls,  and  how  far  they 
are  from  the  sun,  and  from  our  earth,  and 
hear  all  about  Sir  "William  Herschel  and 
'  George — Miss  Sidus,'  as  we  call  it  on  pur- 
pose.' 

"  Now,  Clara,  wouldn't  you  rather  go  to 
Miss  Binns  than  to  Mr.  McLeod  ?" 

"  I  should  like  to  go  to  her  of  all  things. 
What  fun  you  must  have  !" 

"  Oh !  but  Clara  you  would  get  so  tired  of 
so  much  nonsense.  I  am,  for  we  go  over 
and  over  the  same  things  in  the  most  tedious 
way,  and  I  don't  feel  as  if  we  learnt  any 
thing,  either,"  said  Lizzie.  "  Sometimes  I 
feel  reproached,  too,  for  laughing  at  the  old 
lady  so  much,  but  you  can  hardly  help  it; 
and  then  she  treats  those  scholars  so  badly 
25 


290  THE  CANTERBUK5T  BELLS. 

who  are  not  well  off,  or  whose  parents  are 
very  strict  with  them,  that  we  can't  respect 
her  much,  and  those  of  us  who  are  not  afraid 
of  her,  take  up  the  cudgel  for  the  persecuted 
ones  and  make  her  afraid  of  us ;  for  we  found- 
out  we  could  do  this.  But,  Fannie,  tell  about 
the  French." 

"  Oh !  yes ;  we  had  a  French  teacher  last 
winter,  who  used  to  come  and  give  us  les- 
sons, and  Miss  Binns  seemed  to  think  her 
school  was  becoming  something  quite  re- 
markable after  this,  and  would  look  so 
pleased  when  we  came  from  our  class,  and 
sometimes  asked  us  questions  on  the  lesson- 
One  day,  when  I  had  been  learning  French 
about  a  week,  she  said  to  me : 

"  '  Now,  Fannie,  my  dear,  I  suppose  if  you 
were  to  go  to  Paris  you  could  make  yourself 
understood  there,  hey?' 

"  '  No,  indeed,  ma'am,  I  couldn't.' 

"  ( Why  couldn't  you,  my  dear  ?  You 
could  say  'donnez  moi  du  pain?  couldn't 
you?' 

"  '  Oh !  yes,  ma'am.  I  could  certainly  say 
that.' 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  291 

"  «  Well,  I  thought  so,  my  dear.' 

"  '  But,  Miss  Binns,  I  might  want  some- 
thing besides  bread.' 

"  '  Yes,  lune  tasse  de  tlie]  for  instance/  she 
said,  smiling,  and  looking  as  satisfied  and 
pleased  as  possible.  So  I  told  her  yes,  I 
thought  I  could  go  to  Paris,  and  make  my 
way  all  about  by  asking  for  bread  and  tea." 

"  Wasn't  it  Lizzie  that  thanked  Miss  Binns 
for  all  her  instruction,  and  told  her  she  never 
knew  until  a  few  days  ago  that  a  piece  of 
red  morocco  wasn't  a  square,  and  a  piece  of 
green  an  oblong,  just  out  of  badness  ?"  asked 
Alfred. 

"  Yes,  Lizzie  has  been  just  as  mischievous 
as  any  of  us,  though  she's  beginning  to  get 
such  grown-up  ways,  nowadays,"  said  Fannie, 

"Well,"  said  Clara,  "I  should  like  to  go  to 
Miss  Binns  for  just  one  week,  at  least,  to  see 
you  all  at  your  pranks,  for  it  must  be  very 
funny.  But  here  comes  dear  little  Annie ; 
I  must  go  meet  her  and  hear  about  Granny 
Grunt." 

Annie  delivered  the  eggs  and  Granny's 
message  to  Clara,  and  then  as  they  went  to 


292  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

their  room  by  another  entrance  to  the  house, 
she  gave  an  account  of  poor  Moses  Roy. 
Clara  looked  quite  interested  and  serious  as 
she  listened  and  said  : 

"I  know  I  ought  to  go  to  see  after  old 
Aunt  Mindy  sometimes,  for  it  hurts  her  feel- 
ings to  be  neglected  as  she  says  '  by  them  she 
belongs  to ;'  but  she  always  talks  in  such  a 
solemn  way  to  me,  that  I  dread  it.  But 
maybe  it  will  do  me  as  much  good  as  poor 
Moses;  so  I'll  turn  over  a  new  leaf,  Annie, 
indeed  I  will,  to-morrow." 


CHAPTER    XI  V. 

"  MRS.  BANKS,  Uncle  Simon  says  he  heard 
there  was  going  to  be  church  to-morrow  in 
the  old  *  'piscopal  church,  whar  Mas'  Ed- 
ward's family  used  to  'tend,  long  as  was  any 
minister  thar '  — •  I  hope  you  will  let  us  go, 
won't  you ;  it's  been  nearly  two  years  since  I 
was  in  any  kind  of  a  church,  I  believe,"  said 
Clara  the  next  Saturday  morning,  with  great 
animation. 

" Certainly,  we  must  go!"  Our  pew  will 
have  to  be  full  if  the  church  is  open,  if  only 
for  the  looks  of  the  thing.  Grandpa  Ludwell 
used  to  be  one  of  the  vestrymen,  and  the 
family  have  always  supported  the  church 
very  warmly,"  said  Frank  oracularly. 

"And  there  has  been  a  time,  my  dear  Mis- 
ter Frank,  when  the  Lud wells  found  pleasure 
in  going  to  the  house  of  God,  not  for  the 
looks  of  the  thing,  but  that  they  might  join 
in  worshipping  him  on  his  holy  day." 
25* 


294  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  I  didn't  know  there  was  any  church  in 
the  neighborhood,  but  I'm  so  glad  to  find 
there  is,"  said  Annie. 

"  Yes,  there's  a  grand  old  church  about 
seven  miles  off,  just  as  you  approach,  the  vil- 
lage of .  There  hasn't  been  any  preach- 
ing there,  however,  for  five  or  six  years, 
because  we've  got  no  Episcopal  preacher 
now,"  replied  Clara. 

"No  indeed  —  we  stand  a  fine  chance  of 
turning  heathen  too,"  said  Frank.  "The 
servants  and  poor  people  around  have  their 
meeting-houses,  but  they  are  not  very  pleas- 
ant places  for  ladies  and  gentlemen,  for  they 
are  what  I  call  decidedly  vulgar ;  so  we  lose 
our  chance  of  hearing  preaching  at  all,"  he 
continued  lightly. 

"I  wonder,  Mister  Frank,  if  some  ladies 
and  gentlemen  will  not  find  that  heaven  is  too 
vulgar  a  place  for  them,  for  I  hope  there'll  be 
a  great  many  poor  people  and  servants  there 
too,"  said  Mrs.  Banks  gravely. 

"  I  don't  know,  ma'am,  how  that  will  be ; 
but  I  don't  think  it's  very  pleasant  in  this 
world  to  be  crowded  up  with  all  sorts  of 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  295 

people,  listening  to  coarse  common  language  ; 
as  grandpa  says  it's  very  bad  for  our  gram- 
mar. I  wonder  who  is  going  to  preach, 
though  to-morrow." 

Uncle  Simon  now  spoke  up,  saying  in  his 
slow,  emphatic  manner : 

"  I  hearn,  Mas'  Frank,  it  was  Parson  Da- 
vis, what  live  down  the  river  and  have  lately 
returned  from  crost  the  ocean." 

"  Will  there  be  room  for  the  whole  ship's 
crew  of  us  ?"  asked  Fannie. 

"  We  must  manage  to  make  room,  Miss 
Fannie,  as  it's  so  seldom  we  can  go  to  church ; 
I  would  not  like  any  body  that  is  able  to 
get  out  to  stay  at  home,"  answered  Mrs. 
Banks. 

"Some  might  go  on  horseback,  if  the 
carriages  won't  hold  all,"  suggested  George. 

"Yes,  there  are  two  riding-horses  for  Liz- 
zie and  Fannie,  as  they  are  so  fond  of  riding, 
and  Frank  and  Alfred's  ponies,"  said 
Henry. 

The  two  girls  expressed  themselves  de- 
lighted with  this  arrangement,  and  the  young 


296  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

gentlemen    enthusiastically    commended    the 
cleverness  of  the  two  younger  boys. 

"Mayn't  we  take  our  dinner  in  a  basket, 
and  eat  it  under  the  trees,  Mrs.  Banks. 
Then  Aunt  Lindy  won't  have  any  Sunday 
cooking  to  do,"  said  Susy. 

Mrs.  Banks  agreed,  and  this  added  very 
much  to  the  anticipated  pleasure  of  the  ride. 
A  great  many  petitions  came  in  during  the 
day  from  the  servants,  for  leave  to  borrow 
horses  from  the  overseer,  and  the  good  old 
lady  kindly  interested  herself  in  making  ar- 
rangements for  the  conveyance  of  all  who 
were  unable  to  walk  such  a  distance.  Pre- 
sently Dinah  came  in,  with  a  broad  grin  and 
a  furtive  glance  at  the  young  ladies  and  gen- 
tlemen, whom  she  seemed  conscious  were 
going  to  be  very  much  diverted.  With  a  low 
courtesy  she  said : 

"  Granny  say,  please,  ma'am,  kin  you  jis  let 
her  hab  one  blue  counterpane  to  cover  de 
wagon-top,  Mr.  Eussell  gwine  to  lend  her 
to  kep  off  de  sun  to-morrow  as  she  go  to 
meetin'." 

"  Well !  I'd  like  to  see  granny's    vehicle 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  297 

when  it's  done,"  said  Alfred,  laughing  heart- 
ily. "  I  suppose  she  thinks  the  blue  counter- 
pane will  be  the  next  thing  to  the  blue  sky. 
Ask  the  old  woman,  Dinah,  if  she  would  not 
like  a  green  veil  too  ?  I'll  promise  to  furnish 
one,  as  well  as  a  pair  of  blue  spectacles  to 
keep  her  eyes  safe  and  sound  in  her  head,  if 
she  wants  them." 

"  How  would  granny  look,  cousin  Alf,  in 
a  green  veil  and  blue  spectacles,  I  wonder  ? 
An't  you  ashamed  to1-  tease  her  so  ?"  asked 
Susy,  laughing  merrily  at  the  same  time  over 
the  comic  picture  which  her  fancy  painted. 
Mrs.  Banks  promptly  supplied  the  blue 
counterpane,  as  well  as  a  new  head  handker- 
chief for  the  old  woman. 

The  next  morning  was  the  first  of  June, 
and  a  lovelier  Sabbath  never  dawned. 
Beaming  faces  were  gathered  around  the 
breakfast-table  ;  and  Mrs.  Banks,  whose  Sun- 
day dress  was  always  of  a  glossier  black  than 
the  one  she  wore  in  the  week,  and  her  cap 
and  kerchief  a  few  shades  whiter,  without  a 
tumble  or  a  crease,  looked  the  very  happiest 
of  that  happy  family.  The  provision-basket, 


298  THE  CANTERBUKY  BELLS. 

in  their  opinion,  required  their  combined 
wisdom  and  skill  to  arrange  in  an  approved 
manner.  In  good  time,  however,  every 
thing  was  in  readiness,  and  the  cavalcade  set 
forth.  Alfred  and  Fannie  put  their  horses 
immediately  into  a  gallop,  and  by  and  by 
they  came  up  with  parties  of  servants  and 
others,  going  in  the  same  direction  with 
themselves,  some  on  foot,  others  riding ;  not 
unfrequently  several  were  mounted  upon  the 
same  beast.  Mr.  Kussell,  the  overseer,  had 
accommodated  himself,  his  wife,  and  six 
children  on  two  horses,  and  jogged  on  slovvr- 
ly  and  contentedly,  in  spite  of  the  pity  Fannie 
could  not  help  feeling  for  the  quiet,  puny 
little  baby,  dressed  in  a  bright  yellow  calico, 
lying  on  a  pillow  before  its  mother,  who 
held  the  bridle  loosely  in  her  hand,  permit- 
ting the  horse  to  go  its  own  gait,  while  she 
looked  about  her  with  an  air  of  perfect  un- 
concern. They  next  overtook  Granny 
Grunt  in  a  cart,  covered  with  the  top  of  an 
old  spring  wagon,  over  which  Granny  had 
drawn  the  blue-check  counterpane  —  the  ori- 
ginal covering  being  worn  out.  It  looked 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  299 

very  much  like  a  moving  tent,  but  it  was 
easy  to  see,  by  the  old  woman's  pleased  and 
happy  countenance,  that  she  was  quite  satis- 
fied with  the  arrangement.  A  bed  was  laid 
on  the  floor  of  the  cart,  and  in  the  middle  of 
this  she  sat,  with  plenty  of  room  to  spread 
her  rheumatic  limbs.  Old  man  Adam  was 
elevated  on  a  stool  secured  by  a  rope,  and 
the  good  old  Christian  couple  were  sing- 
ing: 

"Happy  day,  happy  day, 
When  Jesus  washed  my  sins  away : 
He  taught  me  how  to  watch  and  pray, 
And  sing  rejoicing  all  the  day." 

Annie  was  very  glad  that  Mrs.  Banks  rode 
in  the  carriage  with  Clara  and  herself,  for 
she  loved  to  hear  her  talk  of  old  times,  when 
there  had  been  service  regularly  every  Sun- 
day, and  her  grandparents,  with  her  mother 
and  uncle  and  aunt,  had  attended,  and  sat  in 
the  same  pew  to  which  they  were  going  that 
morning. 

Little  Phebe  made  them  laugh  very  much 
by  asking,  as  they  passed  a  small  log  cabin, 


300  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

in  front  of  which  stood  an  apple-tree  laden 
with  unripe  fruit : 

"  Mrs.  Banks,  would  I  be  Adam  and  Eve 
if  I  was  to  jump  out  and  eat  all  those  apples 
up?" 

"  I  don't  think  you'd  be  any  body  before 
you  had  done,  if  you  were  to  try  that,"  said 
George. 

They  arrived  at  the  church  some  time  be- 
fore the  hour  for  service,  but  already  there 
were  vehicles  of  various  descriptions,  as 
well  as  riding-horses,  fastened  a  short  dis- 
tance off,  while  knots  of  persons  were  col- 
lected about  the  steps  and  doorway,  or  saun- 
tering through  the  yard.  Mrs.  Banks  and 
our  little  friends  spent  some  time  in  reading 
the  inscriptions  on  the  discolored  tombstones, 
in  the  venerable  old  churchyard,  before  they 
entered  the  building.  Some  of  these  were 
very  touching,  telling,  as  they  did,  the  his- 
tory of  whole  families  who  had  passed  away 
in  a  few  short  years  ;  but  there  was  one  tall 
column  of  pure  white  marble,  on  which  was 
inscribed:  "To  the  Stranger  and  her  Child." 

"  Who    was    she,    do    you    know,    Mrs. 


THE  CANTEKBUKY  BELLS.  301 

Banks  ?"  asked  Lizzie,  as  they  stood  before 
it,  full  of  eager  interest. 

"  She  came  to  the  village,  Miss  Lizzie,  with 
no  name  but  Lucy — was  very  beautiful,  but 
always  dressed  in  deep  mourning,  and  wore 
a  black  veil  through  which  it  was  most  im- 
possible to  see  her  face.  She  lived  in  a  sweet 
little  white  cottage,  with  a  garden  in  front, 
and  the  porch  covered  with  vines.  Her  lit- 
tle daughter  never  went  to  play  with  other 
children,  but  was  always  at  her  mother's  side. 
No  body  was  ever  asked  into  their  house, 
although  there  were  many  who  were  anxious 
enough  to  get  in,  and  tried  very  hard  to  do 
so.  Some,  too,  followed  her  to  the  post- 
office,  to  see  if  by  any  chance  the  rest  of 
her  name  would  ever  come  out ;  but  it  never 
did ;  her  letters  were  directed  only  to 
'  Lucy.' 

"Every  Sunday  she  was  in  church  long 
before  the  congregation  began  to  collect, 
seated  in  the  corner  of  a  pew,  as  much  out 
of  sight  as  possible,  and  sat  as  still  as  a 
stone  all  the  time,  with  her  eyes  fixed  on 
the  minister's  face.  She  sang  very  low,  but 


802  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

in  one  of  the  sweetest  voices  you  ever  heard. 
The  poor  people  talked  constantly  of  her 
kindness  to  them ;  she  seemed  to  know  di- 
rectly any  one  was  sick,  or  in  any  particular 
need,  and  to  have  money  enough  to  relieve 
them  whenever  they  called  upon  her  for 
help.  At  last  her  child  was  taken  ill,  but 
she  would  not  send  for  the  doctor  in  the 
village — your  grandfather  had  studied  medi- 
cine and  was  an  excellent  physician,  though 
he  did  not  practise  very  much,  and  she  sent 
to  Belmont  for  him.  He  was  very  much 
surprised,  as  he  had  never  spoken  to  her,  but 
she  had  some  reason  which  she  told  him  for 
this ;  he  kept  his  promise  to  her,  however, 
faithfully,  and  never  told  any  thing  of  what 
passed  to  any  one,  even  your  grandmother. 
The  little  one  died,  and  she  soon  followed. 
"When  she  was  ill,  a  gray-haired  old  gentle- 
man came  to  her  cottage,  and  nursed  her 
most  tenderly — she  took  no  notice  of  any 
thing,  scarcely,  after  her  child  died;  and  he 
was  not  so  particular  about  admitting  people 
into  the  house  when  any  one  went  that  choose 
to  inquire  about  her,  and  he  always  answered 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  303 

them  most  kindly;  but  still  the  mystery 
was  unsolved.  Several  times  after,  she  sent 
for  your  grandfather.  Your  grandmother 
went  to  see  her,  and  took  me  with  her  once 
or  twice.  I  shall  never  forget  one  evening, 
in  the  spring  of  the  year  just  before  she 
died  when  we  found  her,  sitting  by  the  win- 
dow, holding  in  her  hand  a  book  of  most 
beautiful  pressed  flowers,  with  the  names  of 
different  places  in  Europe,  and  the  date 
marked  on  the  bottom  of  the  page.  One  with 
a  long,  slender  stem,  had  become  loosened 
from  the  book,  and  she  held  it  in  her  thin 
white  fingers,  looking  at  it  in  her  quiet,  fixed 
way,  as  she  said  : 

"  '  The  color  faded,  its  fragrance  gone ; 
nothing  left  but  this  poor,  thin,  shadowy 
remnant  of  what  was  once  so  beautiful  — 
yet  God  made  it,  and  nothing  can  stamp  out 
the  impression  of  his  hand  upon  his  own 
work.  Yes !  God  made  my  poor  broken 
heart.  Yes!  it  is  still  his  work,  and  they 
can't  make  him  turn  away  his  face  from  me.7 

"  The  old  gentleman  looked  very  sad,  and 
brought  us  away  from  her.  We  thought  he 


304  THE  CAXTEEBUEY  BELLS. 

was  afraid  she  would  unconsciously  betray 
something  she  would  not  wish  us  to  hear. 
After  she  died,  he  went  away  directly,  but 
left  the  money  with  your  grandfather,  and 
gave  him  directions  to  have  this  stone  erected 
here,  just  as  it  is." 

"Oh!  how  I  should  like  to  know  more 
about  her;  who  could  she  have  been?"  said 
Fannie. 

The  rest  would  have  expressed  the  same 
desire,  but  the  minister  had  come,  and  the 
people  were  beginning  to  go  in. 

The  church  was  a  noble  old  building,  with 
thick  walls,  and  a  heavy  gilded  cornice 
round  the  interior.  There  were  two  chan- 
cels, in  one  of  which  was  the  reading-desk 
and  communion-table,  and  in  the  other  the 
pulpit.  The  floor  was  flagged  with  blocks 
of  different  colored  marble,  and  on  the  pil- 
lars up  the  aisles  were  fastened  little  mahog- 
any mite-boxes,  with  the  inscription :  "  Give 
alms  of  thy  goods,  and  never  turn  away  thy 
face  from  any  poor  man,  and  then  the  face 
of  the  Lord  shall  not  be  turned  away  from 
thee.' 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  305 

At  the  first  of  these  boxes,  Mrs.  Banks 
paused  to  put  in  her  contribution,  and  her 
example  was  followed  by  all  the  children, 
down  to  little  Phebe;  even  "  Mammy"  had 
a  mite  to  give.  Then  they  passed  on  to  the 
large  square  pew  in  front,  with  its  high 
oaken  back,  and  benches  all  around,  roomy 
enough  for  the  whole  family  and  "  Mammy  " 
besides.  Annie  sat  next  to  Mrs.  Banks  with 
a  serious,  thoughtful  face ;  her  prayer-book 
open  and  her  eye  resting  on  the  wocds: 
"  The  Lord  is  in  his  holy  temple ;  let  all  the 
earth  keep  silence  before  him."  She  was 
endeavoring  to  realize  its  meaning,  and  to 
keep  that  silence  of  the  heart  from  all  vain 
thoughts  and  worldly  inclinations,  which 
she  felt  that  it  required,  when,  just  as  the 
minister  had  entered  the  desk,  and  was  about 
to  begin  the  service,  a  confused  noise  was 
heard  at  the  door,  followed  by  creaking  steps 
up  the  aisle,  and  more  than  one  of  the  child- 
ren tittered  so  loudly  that  she  turned  her 
head  at  length,  to  see  what  could  have  oc- 
casioned the  disturbance,  and  could  not  for- 
bear smiling  herself  at  the  strange-look- 


306  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

ing  figure  before  her.  A  homely-looking 
woman,  about  fifty  years  old,  in  a  white 
muslin  dress,  made  very  much  shorter  than 
usual,  coarse  leather  shoes,  a  broad  pink  sash, 
and  a  soiled  white  bonnet,  with  bows  of 
every  different  colored  ribbon  that  could  be 
thought  of,  was  walking  with  a  mincing, 
affected  step  up  the  aisle,  holding  in  her 
hands  a  little  rocking-chair,  which  she  placed 
just  in  front  of  Mr.  Ludwell's  pew,  between 
it  and  the  chancel. 

As  soon  as  she  recollected  herself,  Annie 
turned  away  her  head,  and  tried  to  forget 
the  ludicrous  spectacle;  but  her  attention 
was  often  attracted,  in  spite  of  herself,  by 
the  loud,  emphatic  manner  in  which  the  re- 
sposes  were  uttered;  and  when  the  singing 
commenced,  such  a  strange,  cracked  voice 
rose  above  all  the  others,  that  it  was  impos- 
sible to  keep  back  the  smile  it  occasioned. 
In  more  than  one  pew,  there  was  audible 
mirth.  The  minister  looked  puzzled  and 
annoyed,  but  the  singer  had  her  head  thrown 
back  in  the  most  complacent  manner,  while 
her  foot  bea:  time  indefatigably.  Annie  was 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  307 

relieved  when  they  were  seated  again,  for 
the  reading  of  the  lesson;  but  during  the 
whole  of  the  other  parts  of  the  service,  the 
same  painful  effort  was  required  to  enable 
her  to  preserve  that  composure  and  solemn- 
ity of  feeling  which  the  time  and  place  de- 
manded. When  the  minister  went  into  the 
pulpit,  Annie  turned  so  as  entirely  to  lose 
sight  of  the  stranger  and  her  curious  atti- 
tudes, but  almost  immediately  the  little 
rocking-chair  was  taken  up,  and  in  the  same 
affected,  mincing  manner,  moved  in  front  of 
the  other  chancel,  and  so  placed,  that  it  was 
impossible  to  look  at  the  minister  without 
seeing  those  large,  wild-looking  gray  eyes 
that  were  fixed  upon  him,  and  the  bonnet 
and  bows,  bowing  approval,  or  shaking  in 
disapprobation. 

Mrs.  Banks,  Annie  and  Tommy,  were  the 
only  occupants  of  Mr.  Ludwell's  pew,  who 
preserved  the  least  appearance  of  gravity. 
Mammy  was  watching  Miss  Fancy  Hunter's 
movements  with  the  keenest  sense  of  amuse- 
ment depicted  in  her  face,  slyly  nudging  the 
child  who  sat  next  to  her  at  every  new  de- 


308  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

monstration ;  while  several  of  the  little  child- 
ren's laugh  was  heard  more  than  once  be- 
yond the  limits  of  their  own  pew,  and  it  was 
evident  that  neither  Lizzie,  Fannie,  Clara, 
Alfred  or  Frank  were  paying  the  least  atten- 
tion to  any  thing  but  Miss  Fancy. 

The  text  was :  "  Here  have  we  no  continu- 
ing city,  but  we  seek  one  to  come."  The 
subject  was  one  which  at  this  time  came  with 
peculiarly  solemn  force  to  Annie's  mind,  and 
as  she  listened  to  the  words  of  the  eloquent 
and  earnest  preacher,  her  heart  was  soon  too 
full  to  be  any  longer  conscious  of  the  annoy- 
ing presence  which  had  at  first  disturbed  her 
devotions.  When  the  sermon  was  ended, 
she  longed  to  slip  away  quietly  by  herself, 
and  think  of  what  she  had  heard ;  but  they 
were  soon  surrounded  by  hosts  of  cousins 
and  friends,  who  pressed  round  the  children 
to  speak  to  them,  and  make  inquiries  about 
the  absent  members  of  the  family. 

More  than  once  Annie's  lip  quivered,  as 
she  answered  to  the  questions  about  her 
precious  sister,  but  she  endeavored  to  com- 
mand herself,  and  did  not  express  the  anxie- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  809 

ty  which  this  circumstance  had  occasioned 
her.  And  to  many  her  manner  appeared 
only  cold  and  restrained.  Little  Tommy 
was  caressed,  petted,  and  praised  aloud,  by 
almost  every  one  that  passed  him.  Mrs. 
Banks  found  some  difficulty  in  declining  the 
invitations  which  were  urgently  pressed,  that 
the  children  and  herself  should  stay  and  dine 
with  some  of  their  numerous  friends  and  re- 
lations. 

At  length,  to  Annie's  great  relief,  they  had 
taken  their  seats  in  the  carriage,  and  were 
about  to  drive  off,  when  they  were  most  un- 
expectedly stopped  by  no  less  a  personage 
than  Miss  Fancy  Hunter,  who  spied  them 
just  as  she  herself  was  about  following  her 
pet  little  rocking-chair  into  an  old  hearse, 
which  had  been  slightly  modified,  and  con 
verted  into  an  eccentric-looking  carry-all. 
As  soon  as  she  caught  a  glimpse  of  Mrs. 
Banks's  face,  she  jumped  down  from  her 
vehicle,  exclaiming  in  a  loud  tone,  throwing 
back  her  head  and  raising  her  hands  theatri- 
cally : 

"  Do  nry  eyes  inform  me  truly  ?     Can  that 


310  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

be  indeed  Mrs.  Banks — my  time-honored  and 
most  worthy  friend  ?  Stop,  driver !  stop, 
and  do  not  bear  her  hence,  until  I  have  en- 
deavored to  express  the  emotion  which  I 
feel,  as  like  a  swollen  torrent,  past  memories 
rush  over  me  at  sight  of  this  dear  and  ven- 
erable creature,"  she  continued,  rushing  with 
extended  arms  to  the  carriage-window. 

Mrs.  Banks  gave  her  a  kind,  pitying  look, 
and  murmured  in  a  low  voice :  "  Poor  heart ! 
as  wild  as  ever !"  Then  she  said  aloud : 

"Well,  Fanny!  how  do  you  do?  it  has 
been  a  long  time  since  we  met,  and  I  am 
very  glad  to  see  you." 

"  Why  then,  address  me  in  such  cold  and 
studied  phrase,  and  apply  to  me  that  home- 
ly appellation?  Have  you  forgotten,  dear 
friend,  the  melting  scenes  through  which  we 
passed  in  days  of  yore  ;  or  that  I  wander  in 
maiden  meditation,  Fancy-free?  No,  I  see 
by  the  kind  look  in  your  mild  eye  'twas 
only  a  momentary  slip  of  the  tongue  or  the 
memory,  so  let  me  embrace  thee,  and  then, 
formally  present  me  by  the  softer,  more 
euphonious,  and  poetically  associated  title 


THE   CANTEEBUEY  BELLS.  811 

which.  I  have  chosen  for  myself,  Fancy 
Hunter — begging  grace  of  the  ashes  of  my 
revered  mother,  whose  plainer  taste  had 
selected  one  less  appropriate  to  the  unfore- 
seen fate  and  fortunes  of  her  daughter — to 
these  sweet  buds  and  blossoms  whom  my 
quick  wit  has  already  informed  me,  belong 
to  the  proud  house  of  Ludwell." 

The  children  laughed  uncontrollably.  Mrs. 
Banks  smiled  and  said : 

"As  you  have  told  them  your  name,  it 
will  only  be  necessary  for  me  to  correct  a 
slight  mistake  you  have  made  in  theirs. 
These  four  are  Mr.  Edward's  children  ;  these 
two  Miss  Annie's;  and  those  young  ladies 
on  horseback,  with  their  brother,  are  from 
"Washington,  the  Misses  and  young  Mister 
Forest." 

"  From  Washington,  are  they  ?  That  city, 
which,  being  named  from  the  father  of  his 
country,  stirs  up  our  most  patriotic  emotions ! 
I  trust  that  breathing  such  air,  you,  Mr. 
Forest,  are  ever  nourishing  the  free-born 
spirit  which  becomes  an  American  citizen; 
while  you,  young  ladies,  amidst  the  gay  scenes 


312  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

of  metropolitan  life,  will  never  lose  your 
sense  of  nature's  charms  or  relish  for  rural 
delights,"  she  said  with  soft  lisping  tones, 
compressing  her  lips  as  she  ended,  and  look- 
ing from  one  to  the  other,  as  if  to  mark  the 
effect  of  her  words. 

Alfred  made  a  low  deferential  bow  and 
said: 

"  We  feel  too  much  honored,  madam,  that 
so  distinguished  a  personage  as  yourself 
should  express  any  interest  in  our  future 
welfare  or  present  enjoyment,  and  I  must, 
in  speaking  of  present  enjoyment,  not  lose 
this  opportunity  of  thanking  you  for  the 
rare  treat,  which  your  sweet  singing  afforded 
TIS  this  morning." 

Miss  Fancy  Hunter's  eyes  sparkled  at  this ; 
she  simpered  and  smiled,  and  tossed  her  head 
to  one  side,  then  said  to  Mrs.  Banks  in  a  low 
whisper,  giggling  affectedly  as  she  did  so  : 

"  Why,  my  dear  friend,  what  a  remarkably 
pleasing  young  person  he  is!  It  has  quite 
surprised  and  captivated  me  to  find  such 
polished  ease  and  grace  in  one  so -young; 
and  he  is  very  handsome  besides."  Then 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  313 

turning  to  Alfred,  she  continued  in  the  same 
soft,  simpering  manner: 

u  Your  compliment,  so  gracefully  paid. 
Master  Forest,  falls  gratefully  upon  my  ear, 
and  reminds  me  of  what  I  often  hear  from 
the  lips  of  a  gifted  young  poet  with  whom  I 
have  the  pleasure  of  boarding  at  this  time. 
I  mean  that  we  rent  apartments  in  the  same 
lodging-house,  not  that  he  is  mine  host.  No, 
for  he  is  true  to  his  brotherhood,  and  owning 
nothing  but  his  brains,  lives  in  an  attic  him- 
self.  He  often  avers  with  the  most  enchant- 
ing earnestness  of  manner,  that  to  his  ear  no 
music  is  so  captivating  as  the  warbling  of 
my  *  native  wood-notes  wild;'  strange,  isn't 
it  Mrs.  Banks,  that  he  should  have  made  a 
quotation  in  application  to  myself,  immedia- 
tely preceded  by  the  sweet  little  appellative 
which  I  have  selected  as  my  own.  You  re- 
member the  passage  runs  thus:  'Sweetest 
Shakspeare,  Fancy's  child,  warble  his  native 
wood-notes  wild.'  And  dear  Mrs.  Banks,  I 
must  describe  to  you  a  scene  through  which 
I  passed  a  few  days  ago  with  this  interesting 
youth,  which  would  have  done  credit  to  a 
27 


314  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

tragedy  of  the  highest  order.  I  came  in  from 
a  shopping  expedition,  and,  going  to  mirror, 
was  shocked  and  distressed  to  find  quite  a 
vitille  pimple  just  in  the  centre  of  my  soft, 
downy  cheekr  as  young  Mr.  so  and  so,  as  I 
choose  for  the  present  to  call  him,  has  more 
than  once  described  it,  in  his  sweet  effusions 
in  praise  of  my  beauty.  I  had  a  little  of 
your  elder  ointment  in  a  jar,  and  forthwith 
determined  to  apply  it  to  the  offending  cheek, 
which  I  did,  and  then,  putting  on  my  ruffled 
robe  de  chambry,  sat  down  in  my  little  rock- 
ing-chair— my  sewing-chair  as  dear  mamma 
used  to  call  it  when  she  made  me  sit  up  very 
straight  in  it,  and  deny  myself  the  use  of 
the  rockers  until  I  had  finished  my  task.  I 
was  seated  in  this,  reading  some  of  the  melo- 
dies of  Lord  Byron,  when  I  looked  upon 
the  spotless  coverlid  of  my  bed,  which  was 
near  me,  and  saw  a  huge  creature  approach- 
ing with  wings  of  brilliant  dyes.  It  was  a 
fly,  Mrs.  Banks,  but  dear  me,  so  enormous  I 
and  was  evidently  attracted  by  the  elder 
ointment,  and  meditating  an  attack  on  my 
poor  cheek.  I  turned  very  cold  and  thought 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  315 

I  should  have  fainted,  but  said  to  myself, 
'  For  the  sake  of  your  lineage,  Fancy,  for- 
bear,' and  then  armed  with  the  courage  of 
my  forefathers,  I  screamed  aloud  for  help, 

when  instantly  young   Mr.  appeared, 

and  I  pointed  with  my  forefinger  to  the  dan- 
ger. With  the  coolness  of  a  hero  he  instant- 
ly seized  a  weapon  and  almost  destroyed  the 
creature,  but  it  escaped  through  the  open 
window  at  last,  and  I  in  a  husky  tone  could 
just  utter,  'shut  it!'  when  I  fainted  away. 
On  coming  too  I  found  this  interesting- 
youth,  who  has  the  finest  sensibilities  in  the 
world,  holding  my  poor  hand  and  weeping 
bitterly ;  but  it  reminds  me  he  will  have  a 
thousand  terrors,  if  I  absent  myself  so  long 
from  home,  and  besides,  I  may  be  needed  to 
provide  in  some  way  for  his  comfort :  he  is 
distressingly  delicate ;  his  life  only  prolonged 
by  my  tender  nursing.  Good-day !  I  shall 
take  an  early  opportunity  of  renewing  my 
friendship  with  you,  Mrs.  Banks,  by  calling 
at  Belmont,  and  cultivating  at  the  same  time 
the  acquaintance  of  these  charming  young 
people,  especially  of  the  gifted  and  interest- 


Si 6  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

ing  Mr.  Forest.  Here,  sir,  is  my  hand  to 
kiss !  Ah !  I  shall  make  some  body  jealous 
when  I  report  the  scenes  through  which  I 
have  passed  this  morning." 

Miss  Fancy  Hunter,  with  many  smirks 
and  grimaces,  bowed  herself  off  now,  and  re- 
turned to  her  hearse.  When  she  was  seated 
and  about  to  drive  off,  she  kissed  her  hand 
to  the  carriage  and  called  out : 

"  I  should  have  insisted  peremptorily  upon 
your  whole  party  dining  with  me  to-day,  but 
just  now  I  am  living  incog,  and  do  not  wish 
my  dwelling  to  be  traced — adieu !" 

"Who  in  the  world  is  she,  Mrs.  Banks?" 
exclaimed  the  children  with  one  voice,  laugh- 
ing until  the  tears  came. 

"  Poor  Fanny  Hunter !  I  have  known 
her  since  she  was  a  girl,  and  remember  her 
when  she  was  young,  and  quite  handsome; 
and  sensible  enough  too,  but  she  has  known 
her  troubles  as  well  as  other  people,  poor 
creature.  Disappointment  and  mortification 
drove  her  mad,  but  of  late  she  has  been 
harmless  and  only  amuses  people  by  her 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  317 

queer  ways,  so  they  do  not  confine  her  as 
they  once  did. 

'•"You'll  have   to  give  her  history,  Mrs 
Banks,  as  we  take  our  dinners,"  said  Alfred. 

"It  is  only  this,  Mister  Alfred.  She  was 
left  a  poor  orphan  and  supported  herself  by 
teaching  a  small  school,  when  she  became 
engaged  to  a  young  physician  of  good  stand- 
ing, but  too  poor  for  them  to  be  married. 
They  waited  a  year  or  two,  when  her  aunt 
died  and  left  about  five  thousand  dollars  to 
her  sister  and  nothing  to  Fanny.  The  gen- 
tleman then  grew  cold  to  her  and  addressed 
her  sister  instead.  She  accepted  him,  and 
poor  Fanny,  feeling  injured  and  deceived  by 
them  both — it  was  an  only  sister  to  whom 
she  had  been  devotedly  attached — went  crazy 
as  I  told  you,  through  distress  and  disap- 
*pointment." 

27* 


CHAPTER    XY. 

As  Mrs.  Banks  was  busily  engaged  one 
morning  in  the  pantry,  preparing  for  a  great 
brewing  of  her  famous  medicinal  beer,  she 
was  suddenly  interrupted  by  the  entrance  of 
mammy,  in  wrathful  excitement,  bringing 
Emmy  tenderly  in  her  arms,  and  dragging 
with  her  other  the  reluctant  but  dogged- 
looking  Charlie ;  by  turns  she  caressed  and 
comforted  the  weeping  darling,  and  denoun- 
ced in  the  strongest  terms  her  delinquent 
brother.  She  wound  up  a  long  tirade 
against  him,  by  saying  with  a  certain  digni- 
fied, quiet  determination  of  manner  just  as 
she  reached  the  pantry-door: 

"  No,  you  needn't  try  to  pull  away  from 
me  now,  Mas'  Charles,  because  I'se  going  to 
take  you  straight  to  Miss  Banks,  sure  as  I'se 
a  live,  and  jis  hope  she  make  you  hop  too ! 
Umph!  You  nasty  little  fellow!  I  don 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  319 

know  what  you  is  made  of,  no  how,  les  'tis 
bear's  flesh.  —  Jes  to  see  ma'am,"  she  con- 
tinued, turning  to  Mrs.  Banks,  ( '  what  this 
boy's  been  doin'  to  his  poor  little  sister,  and 
she  sick  too — I  lef '  him  there  playing,  while 
she  was  taking  a  nap,  cause  her  poor  little 
head  ached,  and  he  promised  me  to  keep  as 
still  as  a  mouse,  and  when  I  corned  back, 
ma'am,  there  he  was  —  dressed  up  in  one  o7 
your  caps  and  black  wrappers,  a  old  pair  of 
spectacles  on  his  eyes,  looking  like  a  great 
wolf,  sure  enough,  and  he'd  a  been  stooping 
down,  mooing  in  her  face  to  wake  her  up, 
then  he  got  in  the  bed  by  her,  to  play  old 
wolf  and  Eed-riding-Hood,  and  there's  what 
he  done  to  the  blessed  little  patient  creetur's 
neck  and  shoulder,  calling  it  play."  Say- 
ing this,  she  let  go  the  child's  hand  to  point 
out  a  long  scratch  which  he  had  made  on 
Emmy's  neck,  while  her  shoulder  was  deep- 
ly indented  with  the  print  of  his  little  sharp 
teeth,  which  had  penetrated  far  enough  to 
draw  blood :  but  no  sooner  did  he  feel  mam- 
my's hold  upon  his  hand  relaxed,  than  ho 
darted  off,  and  away  he  bounded,  shoeless  and 


320  THE  CANTEEBUEY  BELLS. 

hatless,  as  fast  as  his  feet  could  carry  Mm, 
along  a  narrow,  stony  path  leading  down  a 
steep  hill  to  the  spring-house,  which  stood  in 
a  pretty  clump  of  trees  at  its  base.  Mammy 
was  after  him  in  a  trice,  unmindful  now  of 
rheumatism  or  advancing  age.  "With  a  face 
as  rigid  as  stone  she  pursued  the  chase,  while 
Charlie  dodged  her,  first  behind  one  tree  and 
then  another,  until  watching  his  chance,  he 
presently  made  off  suddenly  in  quite  another 
direction,  and  over  the  meadow  he  scamper- 
ed, heedless  of  thorns  and  brambles.  At 
last,  his  foot,  already  scratched  and  bleeding, 
was  caught  by  his  little  torn  stocking  in  a 
briery  vine,  and  down  he  fell. 

"  Glad  of  it,  serve  you  jes  exacly  right!" 
said  the  relentless  mammy,  jerking  him  up 
with  far  from  gentle  hands.  "Boun'  you 
don't  get  away  this  time,"  she  added  with  a 
grim  smile,  as  she  carried  him  homo  tightly 
embraced  in  her  arms.  The  children  had  all 
collected  in  the  porch  around  Mrs.  Banks, 
watching  the  whole  proceeding.  The  chase 
excited  such  universal  merriment,  that  even 
Emmy's  tears  were  dried,  and  she  had  joined 


THE   CAXTERBUKY  BELLS.  321 

in  the  laugh,  occasioned  by  the  child's  expert- 
ness  in  baffling  mammy  by  his  sudden  flight 
over  the  meadow.  The  feeling  which  en- 
sued when  they  saw  him  at  length  captured 
was  something  like  the  regretful  pity  which 
one  feels  at  seeing  the  champion  of  an  un- 
worthy cause  conquered  after  a  brave  strug- 
gle, mingled  with  a  high  sense  of  the  ludic- 
rous occasioned  by  mammy's  triumphant  air 
as  she  returned  glorying  in  her  victory. 
Charlie  himself  was  hot  and  tired,  as  well 
as  bruised  and  scratched,  still  not  a  tear  es- 
caped him ;  he  preserved  the  same  quiet, 
dogged,  and  slyly  quizzical  expression  with 
which  he  had  made  his  first  appearance  be- 
fore Mrs.  Banks  in  the  pantry.  Taking  his 
hand  from  mammy  with  a  gentle,  sorrowful 
look,  Mrs.  Banks  led  him  into  her  own  cham- 
ber, combed  his  hair,  washed  his  feet,  and  re- 
placing his  shoes  and  stockings  sat  him 
down  to  rest  and  think  for  awhile.  The 
children  meantime  collected  in  the  nursery, 
waiting  to  see  how  much  further  her  puni- 
tive measures  would  extend,  and  mammy  in 
their  midst  expatiated  upon  the  whaling  ho 


322  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

ought  to  get.  But  the  kind  old  housekeeper 
found  it  very  hard  under  the  most  aggra- 
vating circumstances  to  use  the  rod  in  real 
sober  earnest,  although  she  kept  two  ominous- 
looking  bunches  hung  in  full  view  over  each 
side  of  her  mantel-piece ;  she  had  tied  them, 
however,  with  bright  ribbons,  and  given 
them  names  which  greatly  amused  her  little 
charge.  A  stout,  chunky-looking  bunch  of 
poplars,  she  called  Dr.  Birch,  and  some  slen- 
der wiry-looking  willows  were  introduced  as 
his  assistant  Tommy-come-tickle-me,  and 
many  humorous  legends  she  told  of  the  won- 
derful cures  wrought  by  the  famous  surgeon 
and  his  frisky  little  assistant  upon  bad-be- 
haved children,  at  the  same  time  solemnly 
reiterating  her  good  wishes  for  her  little 
folks,  namely  that  they  might  never  fall  into 
the  hands  of  these  same  great  doctors ;  and 
up  to  this  day  none  of  them  had :  now,  how- 
ever, Charlie  was  doomed  to  test  their  cura- 
tive powers.  After  he  had  become  quite  cool, 
and  as  he  began  to  grow  restless  in  his  chair, 
she  called  him  to  the  mantel-piece  to  take  his 
choice  between  the  two.  Charlie  eyed  them 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  323 

coolly  for  a  few  moments,  as  if  measuring 
their  different  lengths,  then  chose  the  red- 
rib  ooned  little  willows — Tommy-come-tickle- 
me  —  which  were  immediately  dislodged, 
while  Mrs.  Banks  tried  to  shame  the  culprit 
into  repentance,  saying : 

"  Fie !  fie !  naughty  boy  !  to  use  your  fin- 
gers and  teeth  in  such  a  way !  Fingers  and 
teeth  which  a  good  God  gave  you,  to  use 
{hem  to  bite  and  scratch  your  own  little  twin 
sister  with !  Shame  upon  you,  Charlie ! 
Show  me  now  that  naughty  hand  which 
made  the  ugly  scratch !  it  shall  feel  the  rod 
first." 

Charlie  held  down  his  head  and  meekly 
presented  his  left  hand,  an  almost  impercepti- 
ble smile  larking  for  a  moment  in  the  corner 
of  his  mouth  as  he  did  so. 

Tommy-come-tickle-me  was  brandished 
high  in  the  air,  about  to  descend  with  effect- 
ive force,  when,  without  changing  coun- 
tenance, Charlie  quickly  drew  back  the  hand 
saying : 

"No!  Mrs.  Banks,  that  wasn't  the  bad 
hand — this  is  it,"  extending  the  other  in  its 


324  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

place,  only,  however,  to  be  in  turn  with 
drawn  as  soon  as  the  critical  moment  arrived, 
with  the  exclamation : 

"  0  Mrs.  Banks !  I  forgot.  I  believe  this 
is  the  naughty  hand  now  and  that  one  an't," 
handing  back  the  one  he  had  the  moment  be- 
fore exonerated.  The  other  children,  who 
had  gathered  closely  about  the  half-opened 
door,  gave  a  suppressed  though  still  quite 
audible  giggle,  at  his  adroit  efforts  to  save 
the  offending  hand ;  even  the  good  house- 
keeper could  scarcely  restrain  a  smile :  yet  no 
one  saw  the  least  change  in  Charlie's  face 
which  wore  the  appearance  of  the  deepest 
seriousness.  Once  or  twice  more  Mrs.  Banks 
allowed  him  to  shift  hands  in  this  way ;  then, 
she  quietly  took  possession  of  them  both, 
saying : 

"  "Well,  my  dear,  I  think  perhaps  loth  may 
have  been  engaged  in  this  naughty  work,  so 
they  had  best  be  punished  together." 

Whereupon  they  received  so  sharp  a  chas- 
tisement that  Charlie  was  brought  to  tears  and 
professed  repentance  with  promises  of  amend- 
ment. Emmy  came  running  in  quickly  to 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  325 

intercede  for  his  pardon,  in  which  petition  all 
the  rest  warmly  joined,  and  Mrs.  Banks 
promptly  and  kindly  yielded,  although  she 
talked  very  severely  of  the  consequences  of 
another  such  oifense.  Mammy's  spirit  of 
retaliation,  however,  was  by  no  means  satis- 
fied with  such  mild  punishment,  so  she  mut- 
tered her  feelings  of  indignation  at  his  being 
"let  off  without  getting  half  enough  for  his 
badness." 

"  Never  mind,  boy  !  you'll  suffer  for  it  all 
yet  one  of  dese  days  ef  you  don  tek  care, 
dough  you  don  get  nuffin  wurse  in  dis 
world,"  was  the  consoling  reflection  with 
which  she  ended  her  complaints,  and  this, 
together  with  bestowing  a  double  portion  of 
.caressing  and  petting  upon  "  dear  little  Miss 
Emmy,"  seemed  at  length  to  soothe  her  trou- 
bled mind.  Emmy's  patient  endurance  was 
greatly  strengthened  by  mammy's  lavish  and 
injudicious  praises,  and  for  the  rest  of  the- 
clay  Charlie  and  herself  were  warmer  friends 
than  usual ;  they  trudged  off  together  in 
search  of  berries  and  flowers,  and  built  their 
houses  of  blocks  and  bricks  in  excellent  hu- 
28 


326  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

mor  with  eacli  other.  Charlie,  it  is  true,  had 
his  own  way  whenever  he  required  it,  but 
the  remembrance  of  Tommy-come-tickle-me 
and  Emmy's  kind  intercession  had  perhaps 
softened  him,  for  he  was  not  quite  so  exact- 
ing as  common,  while  she  was  even  more 
ready  to  yield,  partly  from  a  feeling  of  ten- 
derness and  pity  excited  by  his  punishment, 
and  partly  from  good-humored  self-compla- 
cency, with  something  of  a  desire  to  excite 
still  further  mammy's  admiration,  and  to  be 
regarded  by  the  family  in  general  as  a  little 
nursery  heroine,  for  she  loved  dearly  to  be 
praised. 


CHAPTEK-.  XYI. 


ix  Annie!  Cousin  Annie!"  called 
out  Susy  and  Alice  the  next  afternoon,  as 
they  came  running  up  to  Clara  and  Annie's 
room.  "  We've  come  to  beg  for  Tommy,  to 
carry  him  down  by  the  spring-house,  where 
we  are  going  to  have  a  party  —  -just  a  little 
play  party,  you  know,  because  it's  the  dear 
little  fellow's  birthday.  Won't  you  let  him 
go?  Harry  and  George  have  fixed  us  a 
grape-vine  swing,  and  Aunt  Lindy  has  baked 
us  some  of  the  tiniest  little  cakes  and  bis- 
cuits you  ever  saw  !  Mrs.  Banks  let  us  ask 
her  to  do  it,  because  it's  his  birthday,  and  she 
has  given  us  some  tea  and  sugar  ;  we  can  get 
just  as  much  cream  and  butter  as  we  want 
from  Aunt  Isy  at  the  spring-house.  We  are 
going  to  use  our  dear  little  tea-set  that  grand- 
pa gave  us,  and  have  a  real  fine  time  of  it, 
too." 


328  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Well,  sister  Annie'll  let  me  doe,  I 
know,"  said  little  Tommy,  hastily  throwing 
down  his  paint-box  and  pictures,  and  looking 
up  eagerly  into  his  sister's  face  for  her  to  con- 
firm his  words. 

Annie  gave  him  a  fond,  reluctant  glance, 
but  could  not  resist  his  pleading  eyes. 

"Yes,  Susy,  he  may  go,"  she  said,  "but 
do  take  good  care  of  him,  please.  I  feel 
almost  afraid  to  trust  him  out  of  my  sight." 

"  Oh  !  indeed,  I'll  promise  you  to  take  the 
very  best  care  of  him,  cousin.  He  shall  be 
my  child.  We  are  going  to  play  fathers  and 
mothers,  you  see.  Harry  and  I  will  take  him 
and  Charlie  for  our  children,  and  Alice  and 
Georgie  will  have  Emmy  for  theirs."  Annie 
felt  decidedly  uncomfortable  when  she  heard 
Charlie  and  Tommy  put  together. 

"  I  don't  like  that  plan  altogether,  Susy,'7 
she  said ;  then  added  in  a  whisper,  "  I  am  so 
afraid  that  Charlie  might  hurt  him." 

"  Oh  !  yes  ;  then  he  shan't  come  near  him. 
Georgie  and  Alice  must  take  him  with  Em. 
The  fact  is,"  she  added,  laughing,  "  Charlie 
is  so  bad  that  none  of  us  wanted  him,  but  we 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  329 

can't  leave  him  out,  you  know,  Mrs.  Banks 
wouldn't  let  us." 

"  Oh !  no,  I  wouldn't  do  that,  certainly," 
said  Annie  ;  "  and  maybe  he'll  be  good  this 
evening ;  but  you  know  he  did  hurt  Tommy 
once." 

"  Yes,  I  know  he  did ;  he  hurts  every 
body  for  that  matter.  Well,  0  .msin  Annie, 
you  dress  Tommy  up  very  nicely,  and  I'll  pro- 
mise to  take  good  care  of  him,  and  not  let 
him  be  hurt." 

Annie  smiled  as  she  opened  a  drawer  full 
of  pretty  suits  of  clothing,  kept  with  the 
neatest  possible  care,  and  every  morning 
sprinkled  with  fresh  rose  leaves.  She  se- 
lected a  pair  of  ruffled  paddies  and  a  short 
white  cambric  slip,  with  little  plaited  ruffles 
round  the  neck  and  sleeves.  And  when  he 
was  dressed  in  these,  with  his  corals  clasped 
round  his  throat,  and  looping  up  the  little 
short  sleeves,  she  could  scarcely  contain  her 
admiration  and  pride  as  she  twined  his  silken 
ringlets  round  her  finger,  loving  to  linger 
over  the  sweet  task  of  setting  off  his  beauty 
to  the  greatest  advantage.  And  how  her 
28* 


330  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

heart  throbbed  with  exultation  when  she 
brought  him  down  and  heard  from  every  lip 
exclamations  of  "  how  lovely !"  "  how  beauti- 
ful !"  "With  sweet  unconscious  innocence 
Tommy  took  Susy's  hand  and  walked  away, 
without  seeming  to  hear  the  praises  which 
were  loudly  spoken  in  spite  of  Annie's  efforts 
to  suppress  them.  She  watched  him  from  the 
nursery-window  as  long  as  he  was  in  sight, 
then  turned  away  with  moistened  eyes,  say- 
ing: 

"  Oh !  he  is  so  lovely ;  certainly  he  is 
more  beautiful  every  day,  and  then  so  sweet 
and  good." 

u  There  is  no  denying  all  that,  coz,"  said 
Alfred,  "  but  now  that  he  is  gone  won't  you 
come  to  the  summer-house  with  us  and  join 
our  reading-party?  You  give  us  precious 
little  of  your  company  when  that  pretty  little 
doll-baby  brother  can  furnish  you  with  an 
excuse  for  withholding  it." 

"  It  isn't  that  I  do  not  enjoy  being  with 
you  all,  Cousin  Alfred,  but  I  suppose  you 
could  hardly  imagine  just  how  I  feel  about 
Tommy.  I  do  so  love  to  make  him  happy, 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  331 

to  watch  over  him,  and  do  every  thing  foi 
him  myself,  and  feel  sure  that  he  doesn't  miss 
mother  when  I  am  with  him.  Then  there  is 
a  strange  feeling  in  my  heart  about  him,  too, 
a  kind  of  misgiving  that  makes  me  almost 
tremble  when  he's  out  of  sight.  But  I  ex- 
pect this  is  only  because  mother  is  so  far 
away,  and  I  am  not  used  to  so  great  a  re- 
sponsibility/' she  added,  forcing  a  smile. 

"  That's  all,  you  may  depend  upon  it,  you 
poor  little  motherly  soul,"  said  Alfred,  try- 
ing to  cheer  her  with  his  playful  tone. 

"  The  fact  is,  Annie,"  said  Frank,  "  you 
are  right  foolish  about  the  child ;  he's  a  per- 
fect idol  with  you.  I  never  saw  any  thing 
like  it ;  you  hardly  ever  look  at  him  or  speak 
of  him  without  crying." 

"  I  know  it  looks  silly,"  said  Annie,  "  and 
I  struggle  against  it,  but  sometimes  as  I  look 
at  him,  I  feel  that  he  must  be  too  good  and 
beautiful  for  this  world,  and  when  that  feel- 
ing comes,  and  I  think  of  our  precious  Alice, 
too,  I  can  not  bear  it,"  and  her  tears  were  be- 
ginning to  flow  afresh. 

"  Come,  dear  Annie,"  said  Lizzie,  putting 


332  THE    CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

her  arm  around  her  cousin's  waist,  and  kiss- 
ing away  her  tears,  "  you  mustn't  do  so.  It 
isn't  right.  Come  now  with  us  and  hear 
Alfred  and  Frank  read  aloud ;  they  read 
Shakspeare  to  us  every  afternoon." 

"Yes,  "said  Fannie,  "I  hope  you'll  come 
and  take  a  good  laugh.  I  wish  we  hadn't 
just  finished  c  The  Taming  of  the  Shrew.' 
It  is  so  funny  to  hear  Alfred  read  that;  he 
seems  to  take  such  delight  in  it  himself  that 
any  one  would  think  he  had  had  some  expe- 
rience, and  believed  that  there  really  are 
such  things  as  shrews" 

11  They  certainly  would  if  they  knew  that 
he  was  brother  to  a  certain  Miss  Fannie  For- 
rest," replied  Alfred. 

All  laughed,  and  looked  mischievously  at 
Fannie  as  this  was  said,  and  she  enjoyed  the 
retort,  and  laughed  as  heartily  as  any  of 
them. 

'l  Til  go  and  get  my  work  and  join  you 
in  a  moment,"  said  Annie,  as  she  went  to 
her  room.  Clara  followed  her ;  she  had 
watched  her  with  silent  sympathy  during  the 
conversation  about  Tommy,  when  she  had 


THE   CANTEEBUEY  BELLS.  333 

with  such  unusual  freedom  expressed  her 
feelings  before  the  others. 

"  Dear  Annie,"  she  said,  clasping  her  affec- 
tionately in  her  arms  when  they  reached 
their  chamber,  "  I  love  you  dearly,  so  dearly, 
but  I  don't  know  what  I  can  do  for  you." 

Annie  returned  the  pressure  and  kissed 
her  warmly,  saying  : 

"  Thank  you,  dearest  Clara,  and  so  do  I 
love  you  very  dearly."  .Then  putting  her 
lips  close  to  Clara's  ear  she  whispered  : 

"You  can  pray  for  me,  can't  you,  darling?7 

"  I  do  try  to,"  said  Clara,  in  the  same  low 
whisper. 

Then  Annie,  having  washed  from  her  face 
all  traces  of  tears,  took  her  work-basket ;  and 
the  two  cousins,  with  their  arms  around  each 
other's  waists,  went  together  to  the  summer- 
house. 

"  What  shall  we  have  this  afternoon  ?" 
said  Frank,  opening  the  volume  of  Shak- 
speare  which  he  had  brought,  when  all  were 
seated  and  ready  to  listen. 

"  We  must  let  Cousin  Annie  choose,"  said 
Alfred,  "as  she  is  our  invited  guest.  Bead 


334  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

out  the  names  of  the  plays  in  that  volume, 
Frank." 

"'Midsummer  Night's  Dream,'  'Love's 
Labor  Lost,'  '  Merchant  of  Venice,3  'As  You 
Like  It,'  and  '  Taming  of  the  Shrew,' "  Frank 
read,  and  then  said:  "We  have  read  all 
these  except  'As  You  Like  It,'  'All's  Well 
that  End's  Well,'  and  '  Midsummer  Night's 
Dream,'  so  which  of  these  three  do  you 
choose,  Annie?" 

"I  should  like  the  last  best,  I  think;  "but 
I  would  rather  some  one  else  should  decide," 
answered  Annie. 

"  That's  the  very  one  I  want  to  hear 
most,"  said  Clara. 

"  And  so  do  I,"  joined  in  several  voices. 

Accordingly  that  was  decided  upon,  and 
very  soon  the  whole  party  were  deeply  en- 
gaged with  the  entertaining  vagaries  of  Mes- 
sieurs Cobweb,  Peas-Blossom,  Mustard-Seed, 
Puck,  and  others. 

Meanwhile  the  children  at  the  spring-house 
were  in  the  highest  state  of  enjoyment. 
Under  Harry  and  Greorgie's  arbor  stood  the 
little  table,  dressed  with  flowers,  and  fur- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  335 

nished  with  dainties ;  and  there  was  the 
pretty  little  china  set  with  the  miniature  sil- 
ver tea-pot  and  cream-pot  displayed  in  all 
their  glory.  The  spot  was  shady  and  cool, 
and  the  children  had  gone  early,  so  that  they 
they  might  have  a  long  afternoon  for  their 
party.  As  Tommy  was  the  hero  of  the  even- 
ing, they  thought  it  wa-3  only  proper  that  he 
should  be  crowned  with  flowers,  to  distin- 
guish him  from  the  rest.  Accordingly  they 
gathered  some  sprigs  of  the  Canterbury  Bell, 
and  mingling  these  with  coral,  honeysuckle, 
roses,  and  jessamine,  wove  him  a  garland  and 
wreath.  The  plan  was  that  Henry  and 
Susy  were  to  give  the  feast  in  honor  of  their 
son  Tommys  birthday,  and  George  and  Alice 
should  be  invited  to  bring  their  cliildren, 
Charlie  and  Emmie.  "When  they  were  seated 
on  the  large  stones  placed  round  the  table 
for  their  accommodation  during  tea,  Susy 
looked  up  from  her  waiter  of  cups  and  sau- 
cers, which  she  was  scalding,  with  an  un- 
easy, puzzled  expression,  and  said  : 

"  There !    what  will  we  do  for  grc'-sf  *     I 


£36  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 


Mrs.  Banks  was  here  ;  this  is  our  sup- 
pv?.%  you  know." 

"  OK  !  never  mind,"  said  Harry,  "  we  can 
just  say  ourselves  :  '  We  thank  our  Father 
for  all  these  nice  things  and  pretty  flowers, 
and  pray  God  to  make  us  good,  and  take 
care  of  us.'  " 

"  And  let's  ast  him  to  bless  the  poor  child- 
ren, too,"  said  Tommy. 

Grace  being  said  with  childlike  simplicity, 
they  distributed  the  good  things  with  mimic 
ceremony  and  politeness,  and  all  but  Tommy 
ate  heartily  and  laughed  merrily. 

His  plate,  though  piled  with  the  daintiest 
morsels,  remained  almost  untouched,  but  he 
laughed  and  talked  with  even  more  than  his 
usual  animation.  Occasionally  a  clear,  merry 
note  would  reach  Annie  in  the  summer-house, 
which  made  her  smile  and  turn  her  face  in 
the  direction  from  whence  it  came.  His  face 
glowed  with  a  deep  crimson  color,  his  eyes 
sparkled  with  peculiar  lustre,  and  with  his 
graceful,  winning,  sprightly  little  ways,  he 
seemed  to  give  a  charm  to  all  their  plays,  and 
to  enter  into  them  with  the  highest  enjoy- 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  337 

ment  himself.  "Whilst  they  were  still  seated 
at  the  table,  Charlie,  looking  towards  a  spot 
not  far  from  the  spring,  where  there  was  a 
thick  growth  of  dogwood,  elder,  and  laurel — 
the  bright  red  berries  of  the  elder  contrasting 
with  the  rich  green  leaves  of  the  latter,  sud- 
denly exclaimed : 

"  Bip  !  old  fellow !"  throwing  at  the  same 
time  a  stone  in  the  direction  of  his  glance, 
"  better  get  away  from  there,  quick  now,  I 
tell  you,"  he  added,  stooping  to  get  another 
stone  ready  for  a  second  throw. 

At  this  the  others  all  looked  in  the  same 
direction,  and  to  their  great  dismay,  saw  old 
Jerry  Thrip  gathering  dogwood  and  elder- 
berries in  his  basket. 

!'  Oh !  let's  run  to  the  house,"  whispered 
Emma  and  Alice,  with  countenances  full  of 
consternation  and  fear.  "  What  will  we  do  ? 
Charlie  is  so  naughty  he'll  make  old  Jerry 
Thrip  come  after  us." 

Instantly  the  table  was  deserted,  and  they 
all,  even  Charlie,  too,  began  to  run  home. 
Tommy  alone  remained,  and  quietly  taking 
29 


338  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

up  his  plate  with  both  hands,  moved  off  to- 
.wards  Jerry,  saying : 

"  Sister  Annie  an't  afwaid  of  him  and 
neither  am  I ;  so  I  won't  wun,  but  I'll  just 
dive  him  my  supper,  as  I  don't  want  it." 

"  Heaven's  blessin'  on  the  bairn  for  ever- 
mair,"  said  Jerry,  as,  after  declining  it  several 
times,  he  at  length  took  the  offered  plate,  and 
emptied  its  contents  into  his  cotton  handker- 
chief. 

"  Now  tell  me,  old  Jerwy  Thwip,  are  you 
a  bad  old  man,  and  will  you  tidnap  us  and 
sell  us  ?"  asked  he,  looking  with  an  earnest 
inquiring  gaze  into  the  old  man's  face. 

"  Evil  indeed  wad  bae  the  heart  could  do 
thee  ony  ill ;  but  it's  na'  Jerry  Thrip  wad  lay 
hond  on  mon  or  child.  Yet  it's  a'  the  same. 
I  have  someway  sinned,  and  there's  nae  for- 
giveness with  God  or  mon." 

But  seeing  that  his  wild  excited  manner 
seemed  to  frighten  the  child,  he  ceased  speak 
ing,  and  smiled,  as  bowing  his  head  almost 
playfully,  he  said : 

"Thank  ye,  blithie  birdie,"  then  added, 
"  May  bae  ye  wad  like  this  putty  thing," 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  339 

handing  Tommy,  as  he  spoke,  an  elder-twig, 
from  a  leaf  of  which  was  suspended  some- 
thing about  the  size  and  shaped  like  a  small 
bird's  egg.  The  color  was  a  bright  emerald 
green,  studded  with  specks  of  glittering  gold, 
and  Tommy's  eyes  danced  with  delight  as  he 
took  it,  exclaiming : 

"  Oh  !  that  is  so  pretty  !  A  little  faiwy  I 
I  must  wun  ast  Cousin  Alfwed  if  it  isn't  a 
beautiful  little  faiwy  asleep."  Eagerly  he 
took  a  few  hurried  steps,  and  then  turned  to 
say: 

"  I  fordot  to  say  thant  ye,  old  Jerwy ;  but 
I  do  thant  you,"  he  added,  with  a  bright, 
winning  smile. 

"  Don't  greet  yoursel'  for  that,  bairn.  It's 
thanks  enough  to  see  your  sweet  smiling 
e'en,"  said  the  old  man. 

As  Tommy  ran  towards  the  house,  he  met 
his  little  playmates  returning,  accompanied 
by  Annie,  Clara,  and  Alfred. 

"  Look !  look  I  Tousin  Alfwed,  I  have 
taught  one  of  the  little  faiwies  asleep,"  he 
exclaimed,  exhibiting  his  treasure  with  de- 
light. "  But  stop,"  he  added  in  a  whisper, 


340  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  don't  let's  wate  him  till  night,  when  the 
moon  is  shining,  and  then  we'll  see  him 
dance." 

"What  is  it?  Where  did  you  get  it, 
Tommy  ?"  were  the  eager  questions  put  by 
the  little  voices,  and  repeated  over  and  over 
again  with  the  greatest  rapidity.  Alfred, 
Annie,  and  Clara  also  participated  in  the 
curiosity  it  excited. 

"  It's  a  dear  little  faiwy,  an't  it,  Tousin  Al- 
fwed  ?  Old  Jerwy  Thwip  found  him  for  me 
on  a  bush,"  said  Tommy. 

"You  are  most  too  much  for  me,  now, 
Tom,"  said  Alfred,  "  for  really  T  never  saw  a 
fairy  before,  if  this  is  one,  and  it  may  be  for 
all  I  know  ;  but  I  wonder  you  say  '  he'  and 
'him,'  for  I  should  think  it  might  be  the 
little  queen  herself  come  to  take  you  to  fairy- 
land." 

"  Sister  Annie,  dont  you  think  it's  a  faiwy? 
I  wonder  if  it's  the  little  Tueen's  tar  wage," 
said  Tommy,  turning  to  his  sister. 

"  Oh !  little  brother,  I  forgot  to  tell  you 
afterwards,  the  other  day,  that  fairies  are 
only  make-believe  people — there  are  no  real 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  341 

fairies ;  people  only  pretend  so  to  make  up 
pretty  stories  about  them." 

Little  Tommy's  countenance  fell,  and  lie 
looked  grave  and  disappointed,  as  he  said  : 

"  And  an't  there  any  faiwies  at  all,  sister?" 

"No,  Tommy,  it's  all  just  make-belief, 
every  bit  of  it,  like  your  plays  this  evening, 
when  you  were  Harry  and  Susy's  child." 

"I  am  so  sorwy,  then,  sister,"  he  answered, 
with  the  same  grave  look,  "that  you  told 
me  so,  betause  you  never  made  believe  be- 
fore, and  now  I  won't  always  know  that  sis- 
ter Annie  tells  me  just  true." 

"  I  am  sorry,  too,  dear  little  brother ;  and 
I  meant  to  tell  you  better,  directly  Cousin 
Alfred  had  finished  making  you  wonder 
over  his  pretty  stories :  but  I  forgot  it  after- 
wards ;  never  mind,  I  won't  do  so  any  more  ; 
I'll  try  to  tell  you  true  all  the  time.  Now 
let's  go  see  if  Mrs.  Banks  can  tell  us  what 
this  pretty  thing  is  that  Jerry  gave  you." 

"  Wasn't  you  afraid  of  old  Jerry  Tom- 
my ?"  asked  George  and  Henry. 

"No!  for  he  don't  tidnap  and  hurt  peo* 

pie  at   all,  and  I  wish  he   had  something 
29* 


342  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

better  to  wear  than  that  old  torn,  red  toat,  so 
people  wouldn't  be  afraid,  and  wun  away 
fum  him." 

"When  Mrs.  Banks  looked  at  Tommy's 
treasure  she  said : 

"  I  don't  know ;  but  I  expect  it  is  a  chry- 
salis, and  if  you  will  let  me  put  it  in  this 
glass  bowl  on  my  mantle-piece,  it  is  likely 
that  by  to-morrow  or  next  day,  it  will  be 
even  prettier  than  it  is  now." 

"  I  never  saw  a  chrysalis  like  that,"  said 
Alfred ;  "I  thought  they  were  always  an 
ugly,  dull  brown." 

"  I  have  generally  seen  them  so,  too,"  said 
Mrs.  Banks;  "but  I  don't  know  what  else 
this  can  be." 

So  the  "pretty  green  thing"  was  put  into 
a  covered  glass  bowl,  and  the  children 
thought  they  would  watch  it  and  see  how 
it  could  be  any  prettier.  But  now  they  must 
hurry  back  to  the  spring  and  finish  their 
plays.  Tommy  cast  a  wistful  look  after 
Mrs.  Banks  as  she  bore  off  his  prize,  and 
then  followed  the  others. 

"  Now  let's  put  up  our  cups  and  saucers, 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  343 

and  clear  up  the  table,"  said  housekeeping 
Susy ;  "  then  the  children  shall  swing.  We 
must  invite  Charlie  and  Emmy  to  swing  first, 
though,  because  you  know  they  are  your 
company,  Tommy." 

"  Yes  !  and  while  they  swin'  I'll  just  rest, 
for  I'm  tired,"  said  the  little  fellow,  laying 
himself  down  as  he  spoke.  And  nothing 
could  have  been  more  exquisitely  lovely 
than  he  looked,  lying  there  with  his  crim- 
son cheeks  and  sunny  curls,  on  the  green 
grass,  and  his  bright  eyes  looking  upwards 
with  a  wandering  dreamy  look.  His  wreath 
and  garland  having  become  partially  disar- 
ranged, were  thrown  negligently  over  his 
face,  neck,  and  arms. 

"  Now,  Tom,  it's  your  turn,"  said  Henry, 
after  a  while,  trying  at  the  same  time  to  get 
Charlie  from  the  swing. 

"  No !  I  shan't  get  out  yet,"  said  Charlie. 
"  I  want  to  swing  some  more." 

"  But  you  shall,  sir !  for  you  have  had  a 
long  swing,  and  Tommy  has  not  had  any 
yet,"  replied  Henry. 


344  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Well,  I  won't  get  out  till  I  have  liad 
another,  just  one  more,"  answered  Charlie. 

"  That's  what  you  said  before,  sir." 

"Let  him  swing  some  more,  Henry.  I 
don't  care  much  about  it,  anyhow,  this  even- 
ing," said  Tommy. 

"  Oh !  yes,  you  do,"  replied  Henry  ;  "  and 
you  shall  have  a  first-rate  time,  too,  when 
you  do  get  in.  You  shall  go  as  high  as  we 
can  send  you,  and  as  long  as  you  want  to." 

Tommy  smiled,  but  did  not  say  any 
thing,  and  Charlie  took  another  turn,  and 
when  they  stopped  the  swing  next  time,  he 
jumped  out  himself  and  ran  to  Tommy  say- 
ing, as  he  stopped  to  help  him  up  : 

"  I'll  give  you  the  place  now,  Tommy,  for 
I've  done  with  it." 

Henry  took  his  hand  to  urge  him  on,  too, 
for  Tommy  looked  reluctant,  and  moved 
slowly. 

"  Now,  come,  Georgie,"  he  said  when  they 
had  placed  him  in  the  swinging  branch  of 
the  wild  grape-vine.  "We  must  send  him 
up  to  the  top  of  that  little  tree." 

As  he  ascended  they  heard  a  sound,  which 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  345 

they  thought  was  an  exclamation  of  pleasure, 
and  animated  by  this,  redoubled  their  efforts 
to  send  him  still  higher ;  for  not  looking  at 
him,  they  did  not  see  that  he  was  deadly 
pale  when  he  came  down,  and  that  his  hold 
upon  the  vine  was  relaxed,  and  his  feet 
hanging  heavily  downwards.  Up  went  the 
branch  for  the  second  time,  and  "  hurrah  1" 
exclaimed  the  boys,  in  delight  at  their  suc- 
cessful toss  ;  but  what  was  the  consternation 
and  horror  of  all,  when  as  it  was  descending 
again,  Tommy  fell  back,  lifeless  on  the  ground. 
Their  shrieks  rent  the  air,  but  no  one  stir- 
red ;  they  stood  as  if  petrified,  gazing  on  his 
pale  face  and  motionless  body.  Almost  in- 
stantly, however,  there  was  a  rustling  among 
the  bushes,  and  old  Jerry  Thrip  sprung  out, 
casting  a  hurried,  sorrowful  look  at  the  beau- 
tiful child;  he  took  him  up  tenderly  and 
reverently  in  his  arms  and  bore  him  towards 
the  house — the  children  following  in  subdued 
silence.  Yery  soon  they  met  Mrs.  Banks, 
Frank,  Alfred,  and  several  of  the  servants 
hurrying  to  the  place,  having  heard  the  shril] 
cry  which  followed  the  fal1 


346  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  What  has  happened  ?"  exclaimed  the  old 
lady.  "  God  forbid  that  any  evil  has  befallen 
this  sweet  child !" 

"  I  saw  him  fall  frae  the  swing,  is  all  that 
I  ken,  ladie  I"  said  Jerry.  "  But  it  maybae 
that  the  breath  is  but  gane  for  a  time." 

Mammy  here  made  an  effort  to  take  Tom- 
my from  his  arms,  but  he  held  him  firmly 
though  gently  saying : 

"  Na,  good  woman  !  let  the  lambie  lie  still 
in  my  arms,  tel'  I  put  him  on  his  bed ;  and 
had  na'  ye  better  send  for  the  doctor?"  he 
added,  turning  to  Mrs.  Banks,  who  quickly 
gave  orders  to  a  man-servant,  and  then  hur- 
ried forward  to  where  Annie,  Clara,  and  the 
two  other  girls  were  standing,  a  pale,  breath- 
less, frightened  group.  Annie's  face  was 
white  and  rigid  as  marble,  she  was  in  an 
eager,  listening  attitude,  only  preserving 
strength  enough  to  stand,  by  the  exercise  of 
the  greatest  self-command. 

"  A  fall  from  the  swing,  my  dear,"  said 
Mrs.  Banks,  gently  trying  to  relieve  her  ter- 
rible suspense.  "  I  hope  he  will  soon  be 
better,  but  just  now  he  is  in  a  swoon.  They 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  347 

are  bringing  him  to  the  house,  and  I  have 
sent  for  Dr.  Medhurst." 

Annie  put  both  hands  before  her  face  for 
a  few  moments,  and  when  she  removed  them 
was  calm  and  self-possessed,  though  still  pale 
as  marble,  and  with  a  dark  circle  under  each 
eye.  She  ran  instantly  to  her  room,  threw 
up  the  south  window,  and  all  unassisted,  drew 
his  little  bedstead  in  front  of  it,  arranged  the 
pillows  ready  for  them  to  lay  him  down ; 
and  then  took  from  a  drawer  the  bottle  of 
ammonia  which  she  had  seen  her  mother, 
under  similar  circumstances,  use  for  Alice. 
She  returned  just  as  they  were  about  to 
carry  him  to  Mrs.  Banks's  room,  it  being 
nearer  than  her  own,  and  motioned  to  them 
to  carry  him  up-stairs ;  then  turning  to  Lizzie, 
whispered : 

"Will  you  ask,  dear  Lizzie,  that  he  may 
be  left  alone  with  Mrs.  Banks  and  myself. 
It  is  bad  to  crowd  round  him  so." 

Jerry  stood  for  a  while  in  the  doorway, 
after  he  had  laid  him  on  the  bed,  looking 
wistfully  at  Mrs.  Banks  and  Annie  as  they 
bathed  his  temples  with  cold  water,  and  held 


348  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

the  hartshorn  to  his  nostrils.  At  lergth 
those  deep,  blue  eyes  opened  and  the  lips 
parted,  but  the  look  that  met  his  sister's  anx- 
ious, yearning  gaze  was  not  that  she  was  wont 
to  see  shining  from  those  transparent  depths. 
Those  open  windows  of  the  soul — the  "  meek 
intelligence,"  and  the  tender,  loving,  trusting 
look  were  gone !  A  few  moments  he  stared 
vacantly  around,  and  then  the  lids  closed 
heavily  again,  and  he  fell  asleep. 

Old  Jerry  moved  silently  away.  Mrs. 
Banks,  with  noiseless  tread,  darkened  the 
chamber  into  which  the  rays  of  the  setting 
sun  were  streaming,  and  closed  the  door, 
leaving  Annie  alone,  kneeling  over  the  couch 
of  that  darling  little  brother  whom  but  a  few 
hours  before  she  had,  in  the  pride  of  her 
heart,  decked  for  the  feast  and  sent  off,  de- 
lighting to  hear  the  praises  which  none  could 
withhold,  yet  trembling  at  his  unearthly  beau- 
ty. Holding  his  little  hand  in  hers,  and  gaz- 
ing intently  on  his  pallid  brow,  she  tried  to 
pray,  murmured  a  few  words,  and  then 
ceased ;  her  mind  was  confused  and  dark- 
ened ;  her  aching,  throbbing  heart  could  feel 


THE    CANTERBURY  BELLS.  349 

but  one  presence,  and  that  was  not  the  Un- 
seen One.  She  thought  of  her  mother — 
blamed  herself — listened  to  every  breath — • 
longed  for  the  doctor  to  come — tried  to  im- 
agine what  he  would  say — shuddered  at  what 
that  might  possibly  be  ;  and  then  an  inward 
numbness  seemed  to  come  upon  her — her 
heart  lay  still  like  something  frozen  or  dead 
within  her.  The  beating  pulse  and  throb- 
bing temple  betokened  only  the  body's  life. 
But  what  hand  would  venture  to  lift  the 
curtain  and  unveil  all  the  feelings  of  that 
sad  young  heart  in  this  hour  of  anxious  soli- 
tude. After  a  while,  however,  as  she  felt  the 
little  hand  growing  warmer  and  warmer  in 
her  own,  and  saw  the  healthful  glow,  as  she 
supposed,  displacing  the  pallor  on  his  cheek  ' 
hope  revived,  and  bending  her  head,  she 
wept  her  first  tears.  The  current  once  be- 
ginning to  flow,  poured  forth  its  torrents 
freely.  For  a  few  moments  she  indulged 
herself  in  this,  the  sad  heart's  luxury ;  then 
looking  up  thankfully,  she  gently  rose  and 
left  the  room  to  give  the  glad  tidings  to  the 
household,  that  he  was  "  much  better." 
30 


350  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

Clara  was  seated  on  the  staircase  near  the 
door,  listening  to  catch  every  sound  within, 
and  when  she  saw  Annie,  hastened  forward 
to  meet  her.  With  the  quick,  full  sympathy 
of  a  warm  and  loving  heart,  she  rejoiced  in 
the  good  news  which  her  cousin  brought, 
and  offered  to  be  her  messenger  to  the  rest 
of  the  family. 

"  And  Alfred  asked  me,  dear  Annie,"  she 
said,  "  to  let  you  know,  as  soon  as  I  could, 
that  he  has  gone  to  the  city  to  bring  his 
father  and  mother,  as  well  as  to  see  if  Dr. 
Thompson  will  not  come,  too,  and  if  he  will, 
to  urge  him  to  do  so  without  delay.  He 
thinks  he  will  be  back  by  daylight,  with 
9  Cousin  Susan  and  Cousin  Thomas ;  and  I 
trust  their  coming  will  be  a  relief  to  you, 
The  doctor  may  get  here  much  sooner,  Al- 
fred says." 

"I  am  so  much  obliged  to  him,  and  so 
thankful  to  you  all,  every  one  of  you,  for  your 
kindness  and  love,"  said  Annie.  "  Tell  them 
all  so,  dear  Clara,  for  me ;  and  don't  forget," 
she  added  tearfully,  "  to  thank  God  for  me," 

Then  she  softly  closed  the  door  after  her, 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  351 

as  she  returned  to  the  room.  And  again  she 
was  alone  with  Tommy — "  alone,  yet  not 
alone,"  for  now  she  felt  the  presence  of  her 
Father,  God,  and  kneeling  before  the  open 
window,  after  she  had  .drawn  back  the  cur- 
tain, and  looking  at  the  bright  moon,  as 
almost  at  its  full,  it  sailed  in  silent  majesty 
along  the  cloudless  vault  of  heaven,  she 
poured  forth  her  grateful  praises,  with  a 
.deeper  love  than  she  had  ever  felt  before. 
"  The  goodness  of  God  endureth  forever. 
Truly  God  is  good  to  those  that  trust  in  him. 
While  I  live  I  will  love  thee — my  mouth 
shall  talk  of  all  thy  doings.  "With  my  lips 
will  I  declare  thy  praises.  Praise  the  Lord, 
0  my  soul !  Let  every  thing  which  hath 
breath  praise  the  Lord,"  she  repeated  fer- 
vently, over  and  over  again,  memory  readily 
supplying  the  words  she  needed,  from  her 
store  of  Scripture  knowledge.  And  when 
she  had  thus,  by  expression,  strengthened 
her  faith  and  kindled  her  love,  she  ventured 
to  offer  her  petitions  to  the  Throne  of  Grace. 
And  oh  !  how  sweet  to  feel  that,  though  her 
dear  mother  was  not  present  to  her  bodily 


352  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

sight,  yet  now  in  this  still  solemn  hour  their 
hearts  were  bowed  together,  claiming  mercy 
in  the  same  dear  Saviour's  name. 

The  last  words  of  her  prayer  were  uttered 
in  a  faint,  inaudible  tone,  but  came  no  less 
from  the  depths  of  her  soul :  ."  Teach  me  to 
say,  thy  will  be  done  ;"  and  then  she  rose  up 
comforted.  Another  look  at  Tommy  satisfied 
her  that  all  was  well ;  she  did  not  touch  him 
for  fear  of  awakening  him  ;  he  seemed  to  be 
sleeping  so  sweetly,  and  the  bright  red  color 
which  had  made  him  so  peculiarly  lovely  all 
the  afternoon  had  returned,  if  any  thing, 
deepened. 

"  And  in  the  morning  he  will  be  just  as 
well  as  ever,"  she  said  to  herself,  and  smiled 
as  she  undressed  herself;  then  quietly  seated 
herself,  with  her  head  resting  on  his  pillow, 
thinking  she  would  remain  so  until  he  waked, 
when  she  could  take  her  usual  place  beside 
him.  But  overcome  by  fatigue  and  exhaus- 
tion from  all  that  she  had  passed  through 
during  that  eventful  evening,  she  fell  into  a 
profound  slumber. 

And  so  Mrs.  Banks  found  her  when  she 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  353 

came  in,  to  see  for  herself  how  the  little 
patient  was  faring.  The  experienced  eye 
of  the  good  housekeeper  soon  detected  dan- 
ger in  those  brightly  glowing  cheeks,  and 
touching  his  hands,  she  was  startled  by  their 
burning  heat.  Her  first  act  was  to  call 
"  Mammy,"  and  with  her  assistance,  Annie 
was  gently  laid  on  the  other  bed.  This  was 
done  without  awakening  her ;  she  only  smiled 
as  they  laid  her  down,  and  reached  out  her 
arm  to  put  it  as  usual  protectingly  over 
Tommy.  It  rested  on  the  pillow,  and  she 
slept  on  as  before. 

Mrs.  Banks  then  placed  Tommy's  feet  in 
a  warm  bath,  and  made  cold  applications  to 
his  head ;  nothing,  however,  roused  him  for 
more  than  an  instant.  If  he  opened  his  eyes, 
they  closed  heavily  again  immediately.  All 
night  the  kind  old  lady  kept  her  place  beside 
him,  trying  every  remedy  which  her  simple 
skill  suggested,  and  "  Mammy  "  waited  with- 
in call,  whilst  sleep  and  silence  reigned 
throughout  the  rest  of  the  house. 
30* 


CHAPTEE    XVII. 

"Lsr  tlie  morning  he  will  be  as  well  as 
ever."  Poor  Annie  !  How  little  she  antici- 
pated all  that  morning  had  in  store  for  her ! 
It  was  very  late  before  she  awakened  from 
the  deep  sleep  into  which  those  comforting 
words  had  lulled  her  wearied  body  and  agi- 
tated mind.  The  sun  was  high  in  the  hea- 
vens, but  little  light  came  through  the  closed 
blinds  of  the  darkened  chamber.  Once  or 
twice  she  had  partly  opened  her  eyes,  but 
the  stillness  and  darkness  made  her  close 
them  again ;  presently  however,  a  sound  fell 
on  her  ear,  at  which  she  started  up  suddenly 
in  the  bed,  and  stared  wildly  about  her.  It 
was  a  low  moan  from  Tommy,  as  he  tossed 
restlessly  from  side  to  side.  Annie's  first 
impulse  was  to  reach  out  her  hand  to  feel  for 
him ;  but  missing  his  little  form  from  her 
side,  she  sprang  frightened  from  the  bed; 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  355 

some  one  caught  her  as  she  did  so,  and  led 
her  gently  but  forcibly  out  of  the  room — not 
however  before  her  eye  caught  sight  of  a 
form  leaning  over  the  bed  of  her  little  bro- 
ther, whom  she  instantly  knew  could  be  none 
other  than  that  of  her  own  dear  mother. 
And  as  she  turned,  what  was  her  surprise  to 
find  that  it  was  her  grandfather's  arm  which 
supported  her  trembling  form  and  brought 
her  out.  The  door  of  the  room  to  which  he 
led  her  was  open,  and  embracing  her  tender- 
ly, he  murmured : 

"Bless  you,  my  poor,  dear  child!"  then 
left  her  with  Mrs.  Banks  and  her  cousin 
Susan  Forrest. 

"  "Where  am  I  ?"  exclaimed  the  bewilder- 
ed and  frightened  child.  "  Oh !  tell  me  what 
all  this  means!  Tommy,  my  own  little  bro- 
ther !  "What  can  have  happened  ?  What  is 
it  ?  How  is  he  ?  and  my  mother !  how  came 
she  here?" 

With  words  as  soft  as  love  and  pity  could 
suggest,  her  kind  friends  made  the  necessary 
explanations. 

"  Tommy  is  extremely  ill,  my  child,   but 


356  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

he  is  in  our  Father's  hands  you  know,  and  he 
will  not  suffer  any  thing  which  is  not  for  his 
good  to  befall  him,"  said  good  Mrs.  Banks. 

"And  your  dear  mother  has  been  merciful- 
ly permitted  to  get  back  in  time  to  watch 
over  him  herself,"  said  Mrs.  Forrest.  "She 
reached  my  house  last  night,  and  was  to  have 
rested  there  till  morning,  when  Alfred's  sad 
tidings  brought  us  all  here  together." 

Mrs.  Forrest  pressed  Annie  tenderly  to  her 
heart  as  she  said  this,  and  then  added  imme- 
diately, to  prevent  further  questioning : 
"  ISTow,  let  me  dress  you  quickly,  and  if  you 
will  try  to  be  composed  I  will  bring  your 
mother  to  see  you  ;  but  remember,  my  dear, 
what  a  great  shock  this  has  been  to  her,  and 
for  her  sake  repress  as  much  as  possible  the 
expression  of  your  feelings.  She  can  not 
bear  excitement  now.  You  are  her  own 
child  though,  and  I  am  sure  you  can  control 
yourself  for  her  sake."  As  she  said  this  she 
patted  her  cheek  and  smiled  kindly.  Annie 
caught  her  hand,  and  looking  earnestly  ir,k> 
her  face  said : 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  357 

"  Cousin  Susan,  how  is  dearest  Alice,  and 
where  is  she  f " 

Mrs.  Forrest  turned  away  her  head  quick- 
ly, and  stooped  to  pick  something  from 
the  floor,  then  hurriedly  left  the  room  with- 
out speaking  until  she  reached  the  door, 
when  she  turned  to  say  : 

"  Make  haste,  my  dear  Annie,  in  a  very 
few  minutes  I  will  bring  your  mother." 

She  hoped  this  would  excite  and  hurry 
Annie,  so  that  she  would  be  too  much  occu- 
pied to  renew  her  questions ;  but  she  turned 
now  to  Mrs.  Banks,  and  with  a  pleading 
anxious  look  asked  this  time  : 

"  Is  Alice  better?" 

"She  is  better,  my  child,  much  better 
than  we  have  ever  seen  her,  I  am  sure  she 
must  be,"  answered  the  old  lady. 

Annie's  face  brightened  as  she  now  asked  : 

"And  where  is  she,  dear  Mrs.  Banks ?" 

"  My  child,  I  trust  she  is  at  home.  Your 
mother,  when  she  comes,  will  tell  you  all 
about  her  journey,"  replied  Mrs.  Banks  so- 
lemnly, but  making  an  effort  to  conceal  her 
emotion,  then  she  also  left  the  room. 


358  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  At  home  !  and  spoken  in  such  a  sad  and 
solemn  tone !  What  can  it  mean  ?"  Annie 
asked  herself,  but  not  daring  to  question  too 
deeply  about  it,  she  determined  to  turn  at 
once  to  the  more  cheering  words  "  much  bel- 
ter" and  force  herself  to  hope  every  thing 
from  them,  lest  she  should  be  utterly  over- 
whelmed with  the  fears  that  oppressed  her. 
"When  she  had  dressed  herself  with  the 
greatest  rapidity  she  paced  the  room,  waiting 
impatiently  for  her  mother  to  come.  A  much 
longer  time,  however,  elapsed  than  Mrs.  For- 
rest had  promised,  and  still  she  was  kept 
in  terrible  suspense.  At  last  she  heard  a 
gentle  motion,  and  looking  up,  saw  her 
mother  standing  in  the  doorway,  where  she 
had  paused  for  a  moment  to  regain  calmness 
and  strength.  Ah!  how  strongly  sorrow 
had  laid  its  mark  upon  that  white,  still  face  I 
the  hair  on  her  temples  was  silvered,  too, 
and  she  moved  so  lightly  and  silently,  that 
it  was  almost  like  the  gliding  of  one  from 
the  spirit-land;  where  also  might  have  been 
learned  that  touch,  so  soft  and  gentle,  that  it 
scarcely  seemed  a  reality,  and  yet  so  exqui- 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  359 

eitely  tender.  But  for  this  almost  ethereal 
softness,  the  embrace  in  which  she  folded  her 
child,  and  the  kisses  she  imprinted  on  her 
lips  and  brow,  might  have  seemed  cold,  from 
their  great  calmness,  but  in  this  was  express- 
ed the  deepest,  tenderest  love  a  mother's  heart 
could  feel,  blended  with  something  spiritual 
and  heavenly.  It  was  in  vain  that  Annie 
sought  to  keep  back  the  tide  of  feeling  which 
almost  overpowered  her.  No  sooner  did  she 
feel  her  head  upon  her  mother's  shoulder 
than  she  gave  way,  and  wept  such  tears  as 
can  be  wept  only  on  the  maternal  bosom ; 
nor  was  that  frail  mother's  form  too  weak  to 
bear  the  burden  of  her  childish  sorrow.  In 
her  spiritual  strength  she  stood  erect,  strong 
enough  for  both,  and  bowing  her  head  close 
to  her  daughter's  ear,  whispered  in  a  very 
low  yet  steady  voice :  "It  is  the  Lord :  let 
him  do  what  seemeth  him  right ;  for  he  doth 
not  afflict  willingly,  nor  grieve  the  children 
of  men.  Shall  the  potsherd  strive  with  its 
maker  ?  or  the  thing  formed  say  to  him  that 
formed  it,  what  doest  thou?  The  Lord  of 
hosts  is  with  us,  the  God  of  Jacob  is  our 


360  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

refuge.  "Weeping  may  endure  for  a  night, 
but  joy  cometh  in  the  morning."  And  when 
with  STi:h  soothing  and  comforting  language 
Annie  was  composed  and  strengthened,  she 
heard  from  her  lips,  what  she  could  hardly 
have  borne  to  hear  from  any  other,  the 
explanation  of  Mrs.  Banks's  answer.  Alice 
was  indeed  "  at  home :"  but  it  was  in  that  fair 
city  which  "  hath  no  need  of  the  sun, 
neither  of  the  moon  to  shine  in  it,  for  the 
glory  of  God  doth  lighten  it,  and  the  Lamb 
is  the  light  thereof."  Their  hopes  with 
regard  to  the  sea-voyage  had  all  been  dis- 
appointed ;  instead  of  becoming  stronger,  she 
had  grown  weaker,  almost  daily,  until,  at 
length,  just  as  they  were  approaching  Mar- 
seilles, she  sunk  rapidly  to  her  rest,  or, 
"  should  I  not  rather  say  she  rose  a  glorious 
star  in  heaven,  a  star  which  shall  never  set, 
but  shine  on  in  cloudless  splendor  forever 
and  forever?"  asked  the  mother  with  a  look 
of  steadfast  trust.  UI  will  give  you  now, 
my  darling,  her  parting  kiss  and  message  of 
love  to  you  bofli"  she  added  with  a  faltering 
of  her  voice  on  that  last  word  " both"  Kiss- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  361 

ing  Annie  tenderly,  she  then  repeated  the 
message:  "For, a  little  while  we  shall  not 
see  each  other ;  but  I  go  to  our  Father.  Yer  j 
soon  we  shall  be  united  again,  never  more  to 
part.  The  Good  Shepherd  will  be  with  you 
to  the  end,  as  he  has  been  with  me.  May 
he  ever  bless,  comfort,  guide  and  keep 
you." 

"  Only  a  little  while,  and  we  shall  all  be 
with  him,"  continued  Mrs.  Lee.  "  Her  grave 
is  beneath  the  blue  waters,  where  we  placed 
her  at  sunset  of  the  same  day  on  which,  at. 
early  dawn,  our  Father  called  her  to  himself.. 
Some  other  time  we  will  talk  more  about  it  ;• 
enough  now,  that  meeting  next  morning  a- 
vessel  returning,  I  took  passage  in  it,  and  sor 
instead  of  the  letter  you  expected,  am  here.. 
Is  there  not  something  in  this  to  be  thankful 
for?" 

Mrs.  Banks  now  returned  to  the  room, 
bringing  a  waiter,  on  which  was  a  slight 
breakfast,  carefully  and  temptingly  prepared 
for  A  nie  and  her  mother. 

"  Take  something,  my  child,  you  will  need 
it,"  said  Mrs.  Lee  persuasively,  as  she  saw 
31 


362  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

Annie  turn  away  her  head ;  at  the  same  time 
she  forced  herself  to  swallow  a  cup  of  tea 
and  a  little  morsel  of  food ;  when  this  was 
over,  she  looked  earnestly  and  sadly  in 
Annie's  face  as  she  asked : 

"Are  you  prepared,  now,  my  child,  to 
return  with  me  to  your  brother's  room  ?  re- 
member that  we  must  let  nothing  be  there  to 
mar  the  peace  of  his  last  hours  I"  Seeing 
that  poor  Annie  turned  deadly  pale  and 
trembled  violently  at  these  words,  she  drew 
her  still  closer  to  her  heart,  while  she  sup- 
ported her  with  her  arm,  and  whispered: 
"  When  my  heart  is  overwhelmed,  lead  me  to 
the  Eock  which  is  higher  than  I.  Let  us 
seek  our  strength  there."  Mrs.  Banks  left 
them  alone,  closing  the  door  gently  after  her, 
and  they  resorted  together,  unto  "the  name 
of  the  Lord,  which  is  a  strong  tower." 

The  blinds  of  little  Tommy's  room  were 
no  longer  closed;  light  and  air  might  now 
both  be  freely  admitted.  Over  his  pallid 
face  had  passed  that  mysterious  and  shadowy 
change  which  betokens  coming  dissolution, 
and  he  lay  perfectly  still,  except  for  the 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  363 

hard,  labored  breathing  which  agitated  his 
frame,  and  resounded  mournfully  through 
the  silent  chamber.  General  Lee  and  Mrs. 
Forrest  relinquished  their  places  by  his  bed- 
side, and  the  mother  and  sister  took  each  one 
of  his  little  cold  hands  in  theirs.  And  oh ! 
so  gladly  would  they  have  imparted  to  them 
warmth  from  their  own.  Presently  he 
began  to  breathe  more  gently,  fainter  and 
fainter  grew  each  breath  until  it  seemed 
almost  gone;  when  suddenly  he  revived,  a 
new  light  shone  in  his  eye,  and  a  smile  was 
on  his  lip  as  he  looked,  first  at  Annie,  then 
at  his  mother  in  glad  surprise ;  for  a  moment 
after  this,  his  face  seemed  gravely  to  question 
hers,  then  beamed  with  supernatural  light, 
and  he  murmured  as  if  in  answer  to  him- 
self: 

"Yes,  I  expect  sister  Allie  is  at  home." 
One  large  tear-drop  stood  upon  his 
mother's  eyelid  as  she  stooped  to  kiss  him ;  it 
did  not  fall,  however,  but  glistened  there  till 
all  was  over.  Tommy  put  his  little  cold  arm 
fondly  round  her  neck,  and  held  her  head 
down  by  his  a  few  moments  ;  then  his  hold 


364  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

was  relaxed  and  he  lay  motionless  again, 
scarcely  breathing.  A  half-hour  of  this  sol- 
emn stillness  passed,  when  again  he  revived, 
turned  to  kiss  Annie,  and  asked  to  see  Mrs. 
Banks  and  his  little  cousins.  His  grand- 
father, who  was  standing  near  the  head  of  his 
bed,  now  turned  his  face  to  the  wall  and  wept 
like  a  child.  Tommy  heard  him,  and  glanc- 
ed with  a  sad  disquieted  look  from  side  to 
side  until  his  eyes  rested  on  Charlie,  who, 
clinging  to  Mrs.  Banks,  with  his  face  buried 
in  a  little  red  silk  handkerchief,  was  weeping 
bitterly. 

"  Don't  cwy,  Charlie,"  Tommy  whispered 
faintly.  "  Jesus  will  let  you  in.  I'll  beg  the 
angels  to  make  woom  for  you  and  gwandpa 
and  all  of  'em.  Now  mother,  won't  you  sing 
4  Jesus  loves  you,  wittle  children.' " 

His  mother  commenced  it  alone,  but  he 
looked  as  if  something  else  was  wanted,  and 
turning  to  Annie,  motioned  for  her  and 
his  little  cousins  to  sing  too,  which  they  did : 

"  Jesus  loves  you,  little  children, 

Loved  you  ever,  loves  you  now, 
Loves  to  hear  the  prayers  you  offer, 
When  before  his  throne  you  bow. 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  365 

"  Little  can  you  do  to  serve  him, 
But  that  little  he  will  heed, 
Ever  pouring  out  a  blessing 
On  each  gentle  kindly  deed. 

**  Small  are  all  your  little  troubles, 

But  large  enough  for  his  dear  love } 
Large  enough  for  him  to  carry 
Him  to  soothe  from  heaven  above. 

*'  Slight  are  all  your  little  pleasures, 

Yet  he  deigns  to  take  a  share, 
Deigns  to  smile  when  you  are  happy, 
In  each  joy  himself  is  there. 

*'  'Twas  for  you  his  spirit  tasted 

Such  a  bitter  cup  of  woe  ; 
And  he  lived  an  earthly  infant, 
That  you  might  a  Saviour  know. 

"  When  upon  the  cross  so  freely 

Jesus  shed  his  precious  blood, 
'Twas  that  lambs,  as  well  as  elders,    . 
Might  be  reconciled  to  God. 

**  Now  he's  still  in  glory  living, 

Lives  a  Man,  and  yet  a  King  ; 
Lives  that  he,  all  little  children 
Might  to  God  the  Father  bring. 

*  For  he  loves  the  tender  blossom 
Fondly  as  the  full-blown  rose, 
And  he  smiles  when  pure  and  spotlesi, 
Bright  in  heaven  it  fully  blows. 


366  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Come  then,  children,  to  this  Saviour, 

Lift  your  little  hands  to  Him  ; 
You  have  a  Lord  who  loves  to  cleanse  yon 
From  the  guilt  and  power  of  sin." 

Little  Tommy  smiled  at  first  as  they  began 
the  singing,  then  closed  his  eyes  and  folded 
his  hands  until  they  finished.  As  he  opened 
them  again,  he  sighed  and  murmured 
"  Poor  Jerwy  !"  Jerry  had  wandered  round 
the  house  all  night  in  great  grief,  and  in  the 
morning  seized  the  first  opportunity  of 
hearing  how  the  child  was ;  when  told  at 
length  that  the  doctor  said  he  would  die 
before  night,  the  poor  old  man  took  his  seat 
on  the  door-step,  with  his  face  buried  in  his 
hands,  muttering  to  himself.  Jackson  camo 
out  once  officiously  to  order  him  off ;  but  he 
said,  so  beseechingly  that  even  he  was 
touched : 

"  Only  let  me  bae  tell  he's  awa  an  I'll 
mak  nae  noise  wi  me  greetin'  to  disturb  ye. 
Oh !  if  I  might  but  see  his  cannie  face  but 
ance  mair,  and  hear  sweet  words  from  his 
bonnie  lips!" 

"When  Mrs.  Banks  heard  that  he  was  there, 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  367 

she  went  out  and  spoke  very  kindly  to  him, 
and  invited  him  to  come  into  the  kitchen  and 
get  something  to  eat ;  he  refused,  however, 
and  wept  only  more  wildly.  "When  little 
Tommy  mentioned  his  name,  she  whispered 
to  Mrs,  Lee,  who  asked : 

"  Would  you  like  to  see  Jerry,  my  son?" 
He  smiled,  bowed  his  head,  and  added : 
"  And  all  the  servants  too."  As  soon  as  his 
eye  rested  upon  Jerry,  he  turned  to  Annie, 
and  asked  for  his  "pretty  gween  thing." 
The  bowl  containing  it  was  brought,  and  the 
top  being  taken  off,  a  splendid  butterfly  was 
seen,  just  emerging  from  the  covering  it  had 
woven  round  itself.  With  a  bright  beaming 
face,  Tommy  said  faintly,  as  he  perceived 
this,  "It's  wating  up!"  then  as  if  recollect- 
ing something,  shook  his  head  solemnly,  and 
looking  at  Jerry,  said :  "  JSTo  !  there  arit  any 
faiwies  /"  His  face  looked  troubled  as  he 
next  glanced  towards  Annie,  but  quickly  re- 
covered its  sweet,  bright  look,  as  he  added : 

"  But  sister  Annie  didn't  mean  to ;  she 
fordot."  He  then  left  the  bowl  in  his  sister's 
hand,  and  holding  out  his  own  to  Jerry,  said, 


368  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS, 

in  a  voice  scarcely  more  than  a  sigh,  with  a 
long  pause  between  each  word : 

* { Jesus — loves — the — poor — too — mother 
—  and  —  sister — Annie — will — tell — you — 
about — him — and — about — the — bwight — 
mansions — he's — got — in — heaven — for — us." 
This  effort  so  exhausted  him,  that  he  spoke 
no  more,  but  held  out  his  hands,  as  if  he 
wished  his  mother  to  take  him  up,  which  she 
did,  and  holding  him  to  her  bosom,  sang 
him  the  same  nursery  hymns  with  which  she 
had  so  often  lulled  him  to  his  nightly  slum- 
bers. A  little  before  sunset  his  frame 
quivered  with  a  slight  convulsive  movement, 
and  all  was  over  ! 

"And  so  he  giveth  his  beloved  sleep,"  said 
the  mother  as  she  laid  him  gently  on  the 
bed.  And  then  the  long-standing  tear  in  her 
eye  fell  upon  his  golden  curls,  followed  by 
another,  and  another,  as,  raising  her  eyes  to 
heaven,  she  fervently  ejaculated:  "Even  so, 
Father,  for  so  it  seemed  good  in  thy  sight. 
Not  my  will,  but  thine  be  done." 

Annie  had  set  the  bowl  containing  the 
chrysalis,  uncovered  on  the  stand  by  little 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  869 

Tommy's  bedside,  and  while  all  the  family 
•were  still  gazing  on  his  cherub  face,  the  but- 
terfly flew  out,  and  after  making  a  circuit 
once  or  twice  round  the  room,  alighted  just 
on  the  corner  of  his  snowy  pillow ;  here  it 
rested  for  a  moment  or  two,  shaking  its  gor- 
geous wings  of  green,  purple,  and  gold,  then 
escaped  through  the  open  window,  and  high. 
and  joyously  it  soared  aloft  in  the  balmy 
summer  evening  air. 

Beautiful  type  of  immortality !  like  the 
lovely  boy  whose  blissful  deliverance  from 
earthly  fetters  seemed  symboled  in  its  up- 
ward flight,  rejoicingly  it  forsook  its  bright 
outer  covering  so  admired  by  all  beholders, 
to  be  clothed  with  the  glory  of  those  radiant 
wings  and  with  its  singing,  voiceless  as  the 
music  of  the  spheres,  it  would  awaken 
for  us  a  note  of  spiritual  gladness,  and 
teach  us  to  join  its  song  of  triumph. 

"  I  shall  awake,  I  shall  awake,  a  glorious  form 

Of  brightness  and  beauty  to  wear, 
I  shall  burst  from  the  gloom  of  my  opening  tomb 
And  breathe  in  the  balmy  air 


370  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  I  shall  spread  ray  new  wings  to  the  morning  sun, 

On  the  summer's  breath  I'll  live, 

I'll  bathe  me  where  in  the  dewy  air 

The  flowers  their  sweetness  give. 

"  I  will  not  touch  the  dusty  earth, 

I'll  spring  to  the  brightening  sky, 
And  free  as  the  breeze,  wherever  I  please, 
On  joyous  wings  I'll  fly. 

"  And  wherever  I  go,  timid  mortals  may  know 
That  like  me  from  the  tomb  they  shall  rise, 
And  the  dead  shall  be  given,  by  signal  from  heaven, 
A  new  life  and  new  home  in  the  skies. 

"  Then  let  them  like  me  make  ready  their  shrouds, 

Nor  shrink  from  the  mortal  strife, 
And  like  me  they  shall  sing  as  to  heaven  they  spring 
Death  is  not  the  end  of  life." 

It  was  Saturday  evening,  and  as  night 
closed  in,  there  was  a  hush  and  stillness 
throughout  all  the  house,  broken  only  by 
the  subdued  motions  of  the  two  watchers  in 
that  chamber,  where  in  his  shroud,  and 
"  wearing  on  his  infant  brow  the  calm 
majesty  of  death,"  little  Tommy's  beautiful 
form  lay  wrapt  in  that  long,  dreamless  slum- 
ber, to  be  broken  only  by  the  archangel's 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  371 

trumpet.  Fresh  flowers  had  again  been 
gathered  by  the  same  busy  little  hands, 
which  had  decked  him  for  his  joyous  birth- 
day feast.  This  time,  however,  they  brought 
only  white  ones.  Azaleas,  camelias,  Jas- 
mines, and  half-blown  roses  were  placed  in 
vases  about  the  room,  while  in  his  meekly- 
folded  hands  Annie  had  put  a  single  Calla- 
lily,  their  symbol  of  love,  with  its  pure, 
white  cup  resting  upon  that  little  loved  and 
loving  breast. 


CHAPTEE    XVIII. 

THE  circumstance  of  Mrs.  Lee's  return  tt 
Belmont,  just  at  the  moment  when  her  pre- 
sence seemed  most  needful  to  her  children, 
was  one  of  those  events  which  no  child  of 
God  would  be  willing  to  attribute  to  blind 
chance ;  but  rather  to  the  fulfillment  of  the 
Father's  promise:  "I  will  guide  thee  with 
mine  eye"  Had  she  not  "  committed  her 
way  "  unto  him,  trusting  in  these  very  words, 
and  looking  constantly  for  his  direction  ?  It 
was  night  on  the  vessel  which  was  gliding 
over  the  smooth  waters  of  the  Mediterranean, 
an  unusual  hush  and  stillness  prevailed ;  and 
all  had  retired  to  their  places  of  rest  save 
those  whom  duty  called  to  be  up  and  doing, 
or  sorrow  to  wake  and  weep.  Leaning  upon 
the  arm  of  her  kind  protector,  the  bereaved 
mother  stood  silent  and  still,  looking  with  a 
yearning  heart  down  into  those  blue  waves, 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  373 

which  only  a  few  hours  before  had  opened 
to  receive  that  precious  form  around  which 
her  arms  had  been  so  often  tenderly  twined, 
and  over  whose  rapidly  ebbing  life-current 
she  had  been  watching  with  loving  and  pain- 
ful solicitude  as  day  after  day,  under  a  rude 
canopy,  upon  the  deck  of  the  noisy  vessel 
that  fair  and  gentle  one  had  patiently  awaited 
the  heavenly  messenger  who  was  to  bear  her 
up,  far  beyond  all  human  tending.  Mourn- 
fully sounded  yet  in  her  ears,  those  heart- 
breaking words :  "  We  therefore  commit  her 
body  to  the  deep,  to  be  turned  into  corrup- 
tion, looking  for  the  resurrection  of  the  body, 
when  the  sea  shall  give  up  her  dead."  With 
these  sad  memories  there  mingled  too 
thoughts  of  the  dear  ones  far  away,  and  un- 
conscious of  the  bereavement  over  which 
they  were  soon  to  shed  such  bitter  tears ; 
gradually  her  mind  became  more  and  more 
filled  with  a  strange,  shuddering  apprehension 
on  their  account,  and  at  length,  with  a  cheek 
deadly  pale,  and  a  lip  quivering  with  emo- 
tion she  turned  to  her  father-in-law,  saying : 
"  Tell  me,  dear  father,  how  I  can  possibly 
32 


374  TBE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

reach  my  children !  I  feel  an  irresistible 
yearning  to  be  with  them.  A  strange  mis- 
giving about  their  welfare  which  seems  an 
admonition  that  they  need  my  presence." 

The  tone  in  which  these  words  were  spoken 
was  faint  and  low,  yet  full  of  appealing  and 
passionate  earnestness,  so  different  from  her 
usually  calm  voice  and  manner,  that  General 
Lee  was  startled.  Hour  after  hour  he  had 
stood  in  silence  by  her  side,  that  she  might 
freely  give  vent  to  the  first  emotions  of  grief, 
hoping  that  nature  would  presently  find  re- 
lief in  tears  ;  and  it  was  very  touching  to  see 
the  softened  and  saddened  expression  of 
the  old  gentleman's  face  as  he  watched  her 
with  such  evident  anxiety  and  commisera- 
tion. Now  he  almost  feared  that  he  had 
done  wrong  in  allowing  her  to  remain  thus 
long  in  a  spot  which  was  so  calculated  to 
harrow  up  her  feelings. 

"  Daughter !"  he  said  in  a  gentle,  affection- 
ate voice,  drawing  her  with  his  arm  closely  to 
his  side.  "Let  me  lead  you,  now,  to  your 
cabin,  or  arrange  a  couch  for  you  on  deck, 
for  you  have  been  already  too  long  without 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  375 

repose.     For  tlie  sake  of  otters  you  must 
be  careful  not  to  overtask  your  strength." 

"  I  will  do  any  thing  you  wish,  sir,  if  you 
will  only  first  satisfy  me  as  to  the  possibility 
of  my  immediate  return  home.  There  could 
be  no  rest  for  either  mind  or  body  while  I 
feel  this  oppressive  weight  of  anxiety,  re- 
garding the  precious  charge  whom  God  has 
committed  to  my  keeping.  Oh!  I  wish  I 
could  tell  you  how  agonizing  it  is  to  think 
of  being  detained  from  them,  convinced  as  I 
am  that  they  need  me,"  she  answered. 

uAh!  my  poor  child,  it  is  but  your  late 
great  sorrow  which  has  awakened  these  sad 
forebodings,  and  it  is  very  natural  that  it 
should  be  so ;  but  you  must  try  to  dispel 
your  fears,  they  only  unnerve  you  and  tor- 
ture your  poor  heart  without  cause.  Think 
what  recent  tidings  you  have  had  that  all 
was  well,  and  do  not  be  tempted  to  indulge 
in  unreasonable  presentiments  of  evil.  Sure 
ly  you  are  above  superstition  !  Where  is  that 
steady  calmness  with  which  you  have  before 
this  shamed  the  stout  heart  of  manhood?" 
said  her  father-in-law,  trying  by  every  mo- 


376  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

tive  to  induce  her  to  overcome  her  anxious 
fears.  But  as  she  still  remained  silent,  he 
continued  in  a  low  and  hesitating  tone : 

"And,  my  child,  have  I  not  heard  you  say 
that  you  have  intrusted  them  to  the  care  of 
One  whose  faithfulness  can  never  fail ;  has 
your  God  forsaken  you  in  this  bitter  hour  ?" 

"  Oh !  no,  he  has  not  forsaken  me  !  I  feel 
the  support  of  his  everlasting  arm,  and  I 
dare  not  question  his  dealings — still,  dear 
father,  something  speaks  to  me.  I  know  not 
whence  it  comes,  unless  from  Him  to  whom  I 
have  committed  the  guiding  of  my  every 
step,  and  I  would  not — I  dare  not  disregard 
His  warning !  Sweet  had  it  been,  else,  to 
stand  here  as  long  as  I  might,  gazing  down 
into  this  calm,  mysterious  deep,  cheating  my- 
self with  the  delusive  hope  of  seeing  once 
again  what  I  have  committed  to  its  solemn 
keeping  until  that  day  {  when  the  sea  shall 
give  up  its  dead.'  Let  me  beg  you  not  to 
think  me  unreasonable,  nor  refuse  what  I 
can  not  be  denied.  I  thought  I  heard  a  word 
dropped  by  a  sailor  who  passed  us  to-night, 
of  a  vessel  having  been  descried,  and  that 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  377 

we  should  probably  be  compelled  to  lay  too, 
for  fear  of  coming  in  collision  during  the 
darkness.  Will  you  be  kind  enough  to  in 
quire  about  this,  and  in  case  I  have  made  no 
mistake,  and  she  prove  to  be  homeward 
bound,  make  arrangements  for  our  return  in 
her?  I  am  sure  you  will  not  refuse,  nor 
seek  further  to  dissuade  me." 

"No,  daughter!  I  certainly  shall  not,  al- 
though I  did  not  hear  the  remark  you  speak 
of.  If  you  are  right  in  your  conjecture,  I 
see  no  reason  for  our  remaining  here,  and 
shall  yield  most  willingly  to  your  wishes.  I 
was  only  trying  to  remove  your  groundless 
apprehensions  concerning  your  children's 
welfare — not  to  detain  you  from  them.  You 
will,  however,  bear  up  bravely  and  nobly,  I 
am  sure,  as  you  always  do,  still  teaching  us 
how  to  endure  the  adverse  storms  of  fate." 

"Do  not  say  that,  dear  father;  you  are 
robbing  God  of  his  glory.  You  have  seen 
his  grace  magnified  in  a  poor  weak  worm  of 
the  dust,  whom  though  he  has  seen  fit  to  re- 
buke and  chasten  for  her  sins,  he  has  also 
marvellously  sustained  and  comforted  in  her 
32* 


378  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

affliction,  bringing  her  forth  unharmed  from 
the  fiery  surface  through  which  it  was  need- 
ful for  her  to  pass." 

Saying  this,  she  slipped  her  arm  into  his 
and  motioned  that  she  was  ready  to  go  below 
where  her  brother  and  sister  awaited  her, 
having  thought  it  best  to  leave  her  for  a 
while  to  her  own  reflections.  "When  he 
had  left  her '  in  their  care,  General  Lee  re- 
turned again  on  deck,  where  with  his  head 
bowed  upon  his  breast,  he  paced  backwards 
and  forwards  for  more  than  an  hour. 

"  Sins !"  he  murmured,  as  he  brushed  the 
tears  from  his  eyes.  "  What  sins  can  she 
have  committed  to  draw  down  such  judg- 
ments upon  her  head?  This  is  wonderful 
faith,  indeed !  Instead  of  being  crushed,  as 
I  feared,  by  such  a  blow,  she  seems  to  rise  up 
stronger  than  ever.  Ah!  such  religion  is 
truly  a  holy  and  beautiful  thing.  But  if  she 
be  punished  so  severely  in  this  world  for  her 
sins,  God  be  merciful  to  my  poor  soul  here- 
after! "Would  that  the  day  she  once  pre- 
dicted might  indeed  be  coming  when  my 
tempest-tossed  soul  shall  find  such  rest  as 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  379 

they  liave  found  who  thus  believe  in  Jesus. 
The  prayers  and  tears  and  loving  entreaties 
which  in  other  days  I  disregarded,  rush  back 
now  upon  my  heart.  "What  if  all  too  late  ? 
"Would  to  God  I  had  heeded  them  then,  in* 
stead  of  hardening  my  heart  and  stifling  the 
voice  of  conscience.  Surely  nothing  can  ef- 
face from  my  memory  the  words  I  lately 
heard :  '  Eemember,  dear  grandpa,  how  many 
are  waiting  for  you  in  heaven  who  loved  you 
dearly  here — shall  we  look  for  you  in  vain 
when  such  a  welcome  awaits  you?  Will 
you  refuse  to  follow  those  who  have  only 
gone  a  little  while  before  ?'  I  ought  to  have 
led  the  way,  rather ;  but  something  must  be 
done  at  once.  I  will  try  to  pray — God  hear 
me !  God  hear  me  1" 

The  future  must  unfold  the  result  of  these 
(Solemn  meditations.  Let  us,  however,  hope 
that  needful  grace  was  not  withheld.  The 
vessel  which  had  been  spied  that  evening 
passed  very  early  the  next  morning,  and 
proving  to  be  a  United  States  packet,  Mrs. 
Lee  and  her  father-in-law  took  their  passage 
in  her.  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Ludwell  insisted  at 


380  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

first  upon  accompanying  them,  but  Mrs.  Leo 
would  not  hear  of  it.  The  captain  and  kind- 
hearted  sailors  had  been  deeply  affected  at  the 
fate  of  lovely  Alice,  and  now  with  heart-felt 
sympathy,  they  bade  adieu  to  the  bereaved 
mother,  whom  they  assisted  into  the  boat 
which  carried  her  to  the  other  ship,  and  stood 
for  some  time  looking  after  her  with  mois- 
tened eyes  and  heads  uncovered. 

"When  they  reached  their  native  land  again, 
the  travellers  pressed  eagerly  on  without  an 
hours  delay,  and  late  in  the  evening  of  the 
eventful  birthday,  reached  Mr.  Forrest's, 
where  General  Lee  insisted  upon  stopping 
until  the  morning ;  his  daughter  was  very  loth 
to  do  so,  but  yielded  at  length  from  a  fear  of 
wearying  him,  and  because  it  would  be  im- 
possible for  her  to  reach  Belmont  before  mid- 
night and  she  did  not  wish  to  alarm  the  dear 
ones  there  by  her  sudden  return  at  such  an 
unseasonable  hour,  bringing  as  she  did,  too, 
such  heavy  tidings  of  sorrow.  Alfred  had 
mounted  the  fleetest  horse  in  Mr.  Ludwell's 
stable,  and  riding  at  full  speed,  reached  his  fa- 
ther's door  a  little  before  twelve  o'clock. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  381 

Mrs.  Lee  was  still  sitting  up  in  the  lonely 
chamber  to  which  she  had  immediately  re- 
tired. At  her  request,  she  occupied  the  same 
room  in  which  she  had  so  recently  passed  the 
night  with  her  sick  child,  and  now,  how 
every  thing  recalled  to  mind  all  the  sufferings 
through  which  that  dear  one  had  passed,  dur- 
ing her  painful  passage  to  the  tomb !  The 
restless,  wearisome  nights,  the  racking  cough 
and  sharp  pain,  were  all  distressingly  present 
before  her. 

"  Yes !  ah !  yes,"  she  said  in  answer  to 
her  inward  questionings.  "  There  was  still 
another  idol  in  my  heart,  in  spite  of  the 
many  which,  one  after  another,  have  been 
shivered  by  a  loving  Father's  hand,  to  teach 
my  stubborn  heart  submission,  else  I  had  not 
so  vehemently  striven  to  retain  my  grasp 
upon  a  life  which  only  willful  blindness  pre- 
vented my  seeing  it  was  not  his  will  to  spare. 
*  Just  and  right  are  all  his  ways,'  and  I  bless 
his  holy  name  who  teacheth  me  to  say  so, 
even  now;  but,"  and  a  look  of  deep  and 
solemn  stillness  passed  over  her  face,  as  she 
proceeded  to  probe  still  further  the  heart 


882  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

which  ached  intensely  at  every  touch .  * '  "What 
means  this  restless,  painful  anxiety  about  my 
remaining  children?  Surely  this  is  taking 
unnecessary  thought  for  the  future.  Have  I 
not  committed  them  to  our  Father's  care? 
And  yet  these  passionate  throbbings  tell  me 
that  I  do  not  trust  him.  He  will  do  what  he 
will  with  his  own  in  spite  of  my  resistance, 
and  shall  a  worm  of  the  dust  dare  to  lift  up 
its  head  against  the  Almighty  !  Oh !  that  I 
could  be  still  and  know  that  he  is  Godl 
What  if  the  rod  of  chastening  be  yet  in  that 
hand  which  would  willingly  lay  it  aside  had 
I  but  learned  to  submit  ?" 

Trembling  and  weeping,  she  now  bowed 
her  head  in  silent  prayer,  and  having  humbled 
herself  under  the  mighty  hand  of  God,  rose 
up  calmly  and  seating  herself  near  the  open 
window,  looked  up  to  the  same  moonlight 
sky  on  which  Annie  had  shortly  before  gazed 
with  thankful  love. 

Peaceful,  tranquillizing  thoughts  crept  gra- 
dually into  her  mind.  Heaven  seemed  so 
real,  near,  and  blissful,  and  it  was  such  u 
blessed,  happy  thing  to  remember  how  many 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  383 

loved  ones  were  already  awaiting  her  there, 
that  as  she  pondered  it  more  and  more  deeply 
in  her  heart,  faith  seemed  to  lift  her  far  above 
the  earth,  on  the  wing  of  strong  ecstatic  love, 
until,  in  the  rapture  of  the  moment,  she  could 
almost  fancy  that  beyond  that  globe  of  light 
she  saw  "the  land  which  is  very  far  off" 
brought  near,  and  heard  the  "new  song"  of 
those  who  are  "  walking  with  the  Lamb  in 
white."  Her  heart  now  kept  silence,  the 
silence  of  thanksgiving  before  God.  She  had 
no  words  in  which  to  praise  him  for  the 
spiritual  blessings  he  had  bestowed  upon  her 
loved  ones,  the  living  and  the  dead. 

"  What,  cousin  I  are  you  still  up  ?"  asked 
Mrs.  Forrest  with  disappointment,  and 
almost  reproachfully,  when,  after  waiting 
some  time,  dreading  to  communicate  Alfred's 
alarming  intelligence  concerning  Tommy,  she 
ventured  at  last  to  open  the  door  softly  and 
enter  the  room.  "  I  hoped  you  would  al- 
ready have  taken  some  sleep,  as  I  fear  you 
will  not  when  you  know  what  has  brought 
me  to  your  chamber,"  she  added  with  a  very 
grave,  serious  face. 


381  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

She  felt  disappointed,  however,  to  find  that 
her  words  produced  apparently  no  alarm. 
With  eager  interest  Mrs.  Lee  bent  forward  to 
hear  what  she  would  add  to  this ;  but  still 
with  such  an  expression  of  calm  quiet  confi- 
dence, that  her  friend  was  at  a  loss  how  next 
to  proceed,  lest  failing  to  prepare  her  suffi- 
ciently for  the  shock,  the  bad  news  should  be 
too  suddenly  communicated.  Mrs.  Lee  per- 
ceived her  hesitation  and  her  troubled  coun- 
tenance immediately. 

"  Tell  me  whatever  you  have  to  communi- 
cate, my  dear  Susan ;  do  not  be  afraid,  I 
can  bear  it  now,"  she  said  in  a  low,  subdued 
voice. 

And  when  she  heard  of  little  Tommy's 
danger,  her  cheek  grew  paler  even  than  be- 
fore, and  she  seemed  scarcely  able  to  support 
her  trembling  limbs ;  yet  she  uttered  not  a 
syllable,  but  meekly  bowed  her  head.  "When 
the  arrangements  for  their  instant  departure 
were  told  her,  she  thanked  her  kind  friends 
in  the  same  low  tone — her  eyes  expressing 
far  more  than  her  lips.  It  was  near  day- 
break when  they  reached  Belmont.  The 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  385 

physician  from  the  village  could  not  be 
found  that  night,  but  Dr.  Thomson  had  been 
there  nearly  an  hour  when  they  arrived. 
From  what  Mrs.  Banks  told  him  of  little 
Tommy's  appearance  on  the  day  of  the  fall, 
he  concluded  he  was  then  suffering  from  an 
affection  of  the  brain,  which  had  caused  his 
fall  from  the  swing,  while  this,  in  turn,  had 
aggravated  his  disorder,  and  rendered  his 
case  still  more  alarming.  He  advised  the 
most  undisturbed  quiet  and  rest.  For  this 
purpose  the  room  was  darkened  and  perfect 
stillness  preserved,  while  they  gently  made 
warm  applications  to  his  feet,  and  cold  ones 
to  his  head.  There  seemed,  however,  so 
little  hope  of  his  recovery,  that  the  doctor 
could  not  make  up  his  mind  to  resort  to  the 
painful  trial  of  a  blister.  Once,  indeed,  he 
held  the  silken  ringlets  in  his  hand,  which  he 
was  about  to  shave  off  for  this  purpose,  but 
the  lovely  face  overcame  him,  and  the  little 
throbbing,  burning  head  lay  so  heavily  and 
languidly  back  on  his  hand,  that  he  felt  it  was 
useless  to  try  to  stop  the  work  of  the  destroyer^ 

which  had  already  advanced  so  far,  and  was 
33 


886  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

going  on  with  such,  fatal  rapidity.  When 
Annie  awoke*  the  last  hopeless  symptoms 
were  beginning  to  show  themselves,  and  her 
mother  had  been  detained  from  her  to  hear 
that  his  end  was  approaching,  and  that  no- 
thing could  be  done  except  to  afford  all  the 
relief  and  comfort  it  was  possible  to  his 
dying  hours. 

On  Sunday  afternoon,  at  the  same  hour 
on  which  his  death  had  occurred,  a  mourn- 
ful procession  of  playmates,  relatives,  and 
friends,  followed  his  remains  in  solemn  si- 
lence down  the  long  avenue,  and  through  the 
dark  grove  of  cedar  and  fir  trees  to  the  little 
family  burying-ground,  where  they  laid  him 
in  his  narrow  resting-place.  Poor  old  Jerry 
had  refused  to  join  the  funeral  train,  and 
seemed  to  have  taken  up  a  strange,  wild 
fancy  that  his  interest  in  the  sweet  child  had 
by  some  means  caused  his  death,  and  brought 
sorrow  upon  his  mother  and  sister,  in  whose 
faces  he  declared  he  could  never  look  again. 
But  after  the  grave  was  covered  in,  and  the 
family  had  all  returned  to  the  house,  he  crept 
from  the  hiding-place  where  he  had  remained 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  387 

during  the  reading  of  the  burial  service,  and 
seating  himself  upon  the  little  mound,  gave 
vent  to  his  grief  in  mournful  and  touching 
accents. 

"  Ah  1"  he  exclaimed  bitterly,  striking  his 
hands  upon  his  breast,  "  if  but  these  auld 
een  could  hae  ben  blinded  wi'  their  ain  saut 
tears  before  they  quenched  the  bright  light  o? 
thine,  by  looking  sae  lovingly  on  thee,  thou 
bonnie,  bonnie  wean !  And  had  but  this 
auld  withered  heart  been  forever  dead  and 
cold  like  the  stanes  above  thy  blessed  head, 
before  it  withered  the  tender  wee  blossom  wi' 
it's  burning  heat  o'  luve.  I  sud  na  then  hae 
greeting  and  shame  to  see  young  een  weep- 
in',  and  the  good  and  innocent  heavy  wi' 
mournin'  for  thee,  because  thou'se  lyin'  down 
in  the  deep  darkness  where  I  wad  bae  in- 
stead!" 

And  now  the  last  labor  of  love  for  little 
Tommy  was  ended,  the  last  care  over,  and 
the  last  prayer  offered  —  for  he  no  longer 
needed  any  of  these.  Carried  like  a  tender 
lamb  in  the  bosom  of  the  good  Shepherd,  his 
wants  were  all  supplied,  and  his  prayers 


3«8  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

turned  to  endless  praises.  But  the  space  he 
had  filled  on  earth  was  a  blank.  The  little 
bed  with  its  spotless  coverlid,  the  little  empty 
rocking-chair,  the  drawer  of  playthings  and 
books,  with  the  paint-box  and  half-finished 
picture,  all  seemed  to  make  one  feel  at  first 
as  if  he  must  come  back.  Then  they  brought 
to  mind  the  terrible  reality  of  those  sad 
words:  "The  place  which  once  knew  him, 
shall  know  him  no  more."  "No  more!" 
These  dirge-like  words  seemed  to  echo 
through  the  silent  house,  to  be  whispered 
solemnly  in  the  soft  wind  which  stirred  the 
leaves  and  flowers,  and  to  fall  at  last  "  like 
stones  in  an  empty  well,"  to  the  depths  of 
those  hearts  once  full  of  earnest,  affectionate 
interest  in  his  present,  and  fond,  anticipating 
thought  of  his  future  welfare,  now  made  void 
by  his  absence  from  them.  Other  wearers 
must  be  found  for  those  little  suits  of  cloth- 
ing, with  the  neat  stitches  so  carefully 
planted  by  proud  and  loving  hands ;  but  the 
little  hat  and  shoes,  bearing  so  plainly  the 
impress  of  his  person,  with  the  soft  auburn 
ringlets,  were  laid  side  by  side  in  the  drawer 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  389 

•with  other  sacred  relics  which  the  spoiler  had 
left  from  former  scenes  of  havoc,  amongst 
the  heart's  treasures.  To  Mrs.  Lee  these 
things  were  but  precious  mementoes  of  His 
great  goodness,  who  had  for  a  time  bright- 
ened her  earthly  home  with  gems  destined 
for  his  own  royal  diadem,  and  then  with- 
drawn them  in  order  that  missing  their  ra- 
diant adorning  from  the  things  of  the  present, 
she  might  more  earnestly  seek  after  those 
which  are  to  come,  and  labor  to  be  herself 
polished  and  fitted  for  the  Master's  use,  in 
that  day  when  he  shall  gather  together  the 
jewels  which  with  his  own  precious  blood  he 
hath  purchased  for  an  everlasting  possession. 
She  turned,  therefore,  from  looking  on  the 
dark  shadow  which  death  had  thrown  around 
the  hearthstone,  to  gaze  more  steadfastly  up 
to  that  world  of  light  where  no  shadows  ever 
fall. 

83* 


CHAPTEE    XIX. 

MRS  Lee  and  Annie  were  not  unmindful 
of  the  promise  which  had  been  made  for 
them  to  old  Jerry.  Accordingly,  after  hav- 
ing tried  in  vain  to  induce  him  to  come  to 
Belmont  to  them,  they  at  length  determined 
to  go  in  search  of  his  house.  Mrs.  Lee  had 
been  very  sick,  and  still  looked  too  pale  and 
feeble  for  such  an  expedition.  Annie  offered 
her  arm  for  her  support,  and  they  walked 
very  slowly,  often  pausing  to  rest,  so  that 
Uncle  Simon,  who  preceded  them  as  their 
guide  through  the  woods,  carrying  a  large 
bundle  and  basket  in  his  hand,  kept  too  far 
ahead  to  overhear  their  conversation,  and 
was  obliged  sometimes  to  seat  himself  on  a 
large  stone  and  wait  until  they  came  in  sight. 
They  passed  through  the  garden  by  the  same 
path  which  Jerry  had  come  on  the  morning 
that  Annie  brcught  him  up  to  the  house 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  391 

with  her.  It  was  the  first  time  since  the 
death  of  her  dear  little  brother,  that  she  had 
visited  this  place  which  had  afforded  such 
delightful  occupation  to  his  busy  little  hands. 
Near  their  flower-bed  sat  the  pot  containing 
their  Calla  lily,  now  out  of  bloom,  and  it3 
leaves  beginning  to  droop  and  wither.  An- 
nie's eyes  filled  with  tears  when  she  saw  it, 
and  thought  of  the  purpose  for  which  its  last 
flower  had  been  plucked.  How  little  any  of 
her  young  companions  or  herself  had  antici- 
pated this  on  that  happy  morning  when  they 
were  choosing  their  emblematic  plants  !  The 
beautiful  variagated  Canterbury  bell  was  still 
in  full  bloom,  but  a  late  shower  had  pros- 
trated some  of  its  slender  stalks. 

"  Dear,  sweet  little  flower,"  said  Annie,  as 
she  stooped  to  fix  them  on  a  prop,  "how 
dearly  I  shall  always  love  you  for  his  sake. 
Mother,  he  loved  these  flowers  so  much,  and 
when  I  tried  to  explain  what  Mrs.  Banks 
meant  by  her  name  for  them,  '  Family  Har- 
mony,' and  what  she  said  about  the  chiming 
of  the  bells,  love,  peace,  gentleness,  and  hu- 
mility, in  the  family  circle,  he  smiled  so 


392  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

sweetly,  and  asked  me  if  they  were  not  tLe 
bells  papa  heard  in  his  home;  and  when 
some  of  the  children  were  quarrelling  one 
evening,  he  ran  and  pulled  a  piece  and  shook 
it  very  hard,  to  see  if  the  *  wittle  angels 
wouldn't  wing  the  faiwy  bells,'  he  said. 
How  do  you  think  they  could  have  grown 
here  so  suddenly,  mother?  Isn't  it  very 
strange?  Fannie  thought  we  might  have 
dropped  some  seed  without  knowing  it,  but 
Uncle  Lemuel  says  they  don't  bloom  the  first 
year,  and  besides  these  were  large  and  in 
bud  when  we  first  saw  them.  I  am  so  glad 
that  they  were  put  here  at  any  rate,  now." 

"  It  must  have  been  done  by  some  one  in- 
tending a  pleasant  surprise,  my  darling ;  but 
who  it  was,  of  course  I  can  not  say.  /  am 
very  glad,  too,  however,  since  they  gave  our 
little  darling  so  much  pleasure.  Ah !  how 
much  he  could  tell  us  now  about  the  har- 
mony of  heaven,  that  joyful  music  ever 
sounding,  without  a  moment's  pause,  or  a 
single  jarring  note.  It  was  a  good  thought 
in  dear  old  Mrs.  Banks  to  try  to  teach  you 
all  to  connect  the  study  of  God's  word  with 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  393 

his  beautiful  works  in  the  wcrld  of  nature ; 
for  they  are  meant  to  be  interpreters  of  each 
other,"  answered  Mrs.  Lee;  and  for  some 
time  after  this,  they  walked  on  in  silence,  for 
Annie  found  that  her  mother  preferred  this, 
and  was  very  careful  not  to  disturb  her  re- 
flections. 

Uncle  Simon  took  down  all  the  bars,  and 
cleared  the  path  most  carefully  for  them, 
though  he  did  not  at  all  approve  of  their 
taking  such  a  walk,  just  for  old  Jerry  Thrip. 
After  a  while  he  halted  until  they  came  up  to 
him,  and  pointing  with  his  finger  to  a  miser- 
able, dilapidated  old  hovel,  in  the  midst  of 
the  woods,  with  no  inclosure  round  it,  said 
to  Mrs.  Lee : 

"  Dere's  de  place,  madam ;  but  you  see  it 
look  fitter  for  cattle  to  live  in,  dan  it  do  for 
people.  Ef  you'd  please  to  set  down  here 
on  dis  big  rock  a  little  while,  I'll  go  tell  de 
ol'  man  to  come  out  to  you,  and  save  you  de 
trouble  of  going  any  further." 

"  Never  mind,  Uncle  Simon ;  I  would 
rather  go  to  the  house  myself,  I  think,"  she 
replied. 


39-i  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

"  Excuse  me,  ma'am,  for  resisting  upon  it 
so,  but  indeed  I  thinks  you'd  better  not ;  it 
an't  no  place  for  de  likes  o'  you  to  go  in,  and 
I  kin  so  easy  fetch  him  out." 

His  persuasions,  however,  were  useless; 
and  he  was  obliged  to  lead  them  to  the  en- 
trance, a  low  opening,  covered  with  an  old 
door,  broken  off  its  hinges,  and  propped  up 
against  the  wall  on  the  inside.  As  no  one 
replied  to  Uncle  Simon's  loud  rap,  after  wait- 
ing some  minutes  they  entered.  It  was  very 
dark  and  still  in  there,  and  Uncle  Simon, 
after  searching  about  for  the  window,  or 
some  place  through  which  light  might  be  ad- 
mitted, at  length  succeeded  in  moving  aside 
several  rough  planks,  which  supplied  the  de- 
ficiency of  both  shutter  and  sash.  And 
never  shone  the  light  of  day  upon  a  scene 
of  more  dreary  and  squalid  wretchedness. 
Both  Annie  and  her  mother  felt  sick  at  heart 
as  they  glanced  from  side  to  side,  in  the  vain 
hope  of  finding  relief  in  some  quarter  of  this 
woful-looking  abode.  In  several  places  the 
broken  roof  permitted  a  view  of  the  sky,  and 
it  was  plain,  from  the  appearance  of  every 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  395 

thing,  that  the  late  rains  had  had  free  admis- 
sion. A  few  planks  in  one  corner  of  the- 
room  kept  an  old  mattress  from  the  damp 
earthen  floor.  The  bed-clothes,  which  were 
both  soiled  and  torn,  were  thrown  in  a  con- 
fused heap  to  one  side,  showing  large  rents  in 
the  ticking,  with  tufts  of  coarse,  sharp  straw 
sticking  out.  There  was  one  chair,  which 
could  boast  four  legs  and  part  of  the  back ; 
several  stools  roughly  manufactured  from 
blocks  of  wood,  a  long  table,  apparently  from 
the  same  shop,  with  one  of  its  legs  so  much 
shorter  than  the  rest,  that  it  was  necessary  to 
support  it  against  the  wall,  or  risk  the  sliding 
off  of  the  scanty  stock  of  common  delf  ware 
arranged  upon  it. 

"  Well,  I'se  hearn  tell  of  dis  place,  but  I 
never  seed  it  afore  I  I  wonder  what  kind  of 
an  ol'  critter  he  is,  any  how,  to  live  in  sich  a 
a  hole  ?  My  master's  cattle  would  turn  up 
their  noses  at  it.  Dere  an't  no  place  'tall  I 
kin  ax  you  ladies  to  take  a  seat.  I  mighty 
feared  you  be  sick  again,  madam,"  said  Uncle 
Simon,  looking  with  much  anxiety  and  con- 
cern at  Mrs.  Lee's  pale  face. 


396  THE   CANTEKBURY  BELLS. 

"  No ;  I  hope  the  walk  will  rather  do  me 
good,"  she  answered  with  a  faint  smile, 
quickly  followed  by  a  sigh  and  a  look  of  dis- 
appointment, as  she  added,  "  but  I  am  very 
sorry  the  old  man  is  not  at  home.  I  think, 
Annie,  we  will  wait  awhile,  and  see  if  he  will 
return." 

"  But,  mother,  you  will  be  so  tired  if  you 
stand  so  long,  and  as  Uncle  Simon  says,  this 
room  is  not  fit  for  you  to  stay  in.  Suppose 
you  let  him  fix  one  of  these  seats  in  a  shel- 
tered spot  for  you." 

"  That  is  percisely  what  I  was  gwine  to 
do,  Miss  Annie,  dough  it  an't  fit  for  my  mis- 
tus  till  I  gives  it  a  good  cleaning,"  replied 
the  old  servant,  taking  up  a  stool  and  wiping 
it  all  over  with  his  pocket-handkerchief,  with 
an  air  of  politeness  and  gallantry  that  would 
have  done  credit  to  a  courtly  cavalier. 
When  a  large  oak  tree  had  been  found, 
which  Annie  thought  just  the  thing  for  her 
purpose,  the  stool  was  placed  under  it  in 
such  a  way  that  her  mother  might  lean  back 
for  support  against  its  massive  trunk. 

"And  now,"  said  Uncle  Simon,  placing 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  397 

another  beside  it,  "  dere's  one  for  young  mis- 
tus,  too." 

"  Thank,  you,  Uncle  Simon  ;  but  before  I 
rest  I've  got  plenty  of  work  for  you  and  me, 
too,"  said  Annie.  Then  whispering  a  few 
words  in  her  mother's  ear,  she  ran  back  to 
the  hovel,  followed  by  the  servant. 

"  Now,  Uncle  Simon,  suppose  we  surprise 
old  Jerry  by  fixing  up  his  room  while  he's 
gone,  so  when  he  comes  back,  if  we  are  not 
here,  he  won't  know  what  to  make  of  it. 
Wouldn't  you  like  to  clean  it  up  a  little  for 
me?  Sweep  the  floor  and  make  the  bed, 
you  know." 

"  I'd  like  to  do  any  thing  my  little  mistus 
wants,"  said  old  Simon,  "  but  how  I  gwine 
to  sweep  dout  a  broom,  I  wonder  ?" 

"  Oh  !  yes,  I  forgot  that ;  but  I  know  you 
can  make  it  look  nicer  some  way  or  other." 

"Miss  Annie,  you  jes'  go  set  down  by 
your  ma,  please,  miss,  a  little  while,  and  I'll 
derange  all  about  de  broom,  and  you'll  see 
wonders  in  dis  ol'  hole  when  I  gives  you  no- 
tice to  return." 

Annie  smiled,  and  did  as  he  requested  her, 

34: 


398  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

and  with  a  hearty  good  will  the  kind-hearted 
old  soul  went  to  work.  First,  he  made  a 
'kind  of  broom,  which  answered  pretty  well 
for  the  dirt  floor,  by  tying  branches  closely 
together ;  then  moving  out  every  article  of 
furniture,  even  to  the  would-be  bedstead  and 
bed,  he  thoroughly  swept,  then  dusted  and 
replaced  every  thing,  and  even  went  so  far 
as  to  garnish  the  fire-place  with  green  boughs, 
chuckling  and  carrying  on  in  quite  an  ani- 
mated tone  of  voice,  an  imaginary  conversa- 
tion between  little  Miss  Annie  and  himself, 
in  which  she  was  made  to  express  the  great- 
est amount  of  wonder  and  delight,  while  he, 
with  one  hand  resting  on  his  side,  looked 
round  with  a  grin  of  complacent  satisfaction, 
and  shook  his  head  knowingly,  saying : 

"  Thought  Simon  knowed  how  to  please 
his  good  little  Miss  Annie." 

When  every  thing  was  fixed  as  well  as  he 
thought  possible,  he  went  to  call  the  young 
lady,  assuming  an  air  of  humility  intended  to 
heighten  the  surprise  which  awaited  her. 

"  Hopes  you'll  find  things  putty  tolable, 
Miss  Annie  ;  but  you  know  taint  easy  to  git 


THE  CANTERBUKY  BELLS.  399 

blood  out  a  turnup,  and  it  seem  putty  much 
like  dat  to  try  to  make  dat  place  look  more 
genteeler." 

"  Why,  Uncle  Simon !  it's  splendid  com- 
pared to  what  it  was,"  said  Annie.  "  I  am 
so  much  obliged  to  you  for  taking  so  much 
pains." 

"You's  very  welcome,  Miss  Annie,"  he 
answered,  with  his  whole  face  beaming  with 
delight  at  his  success.  "  You  see,  lettin'  in 
de  fresh  are  and  scrapin'  up  the  damp  clay 
off  de  floor  have  kept  it  from  havin'  sich  a 
a  bad,  cellarish  kind  of  smell.  But  here's 
what  gin  me  more  trouble  an  anything  else — 
dis  ol'  table  what  set  so  cranksidy,  less  it 
lean  up  agin  de  wall.  Fust  I  thought  I 
couldn't  do  nothing  'tall  with  it ;  but  knowed 
you  never  want  to  see  it  set  dat  hobble-de-gee 
fashion,  so  says  I,  sumpin  got  to  be  done  bout 
diSj  any  how.  Den  I  thought  bout  de  nails 
what  mas'  Frank  gin  me  to  mend  my  garden- 
palins,  an'  I  found  um  safe  in  my  pocket; 
after  dat  'twas  easy  'nough  to  know  what  to 
do ;  so  I  jes  nailed  on  dis  leg  what  was  fallin1 
out,  and  put  a  block  o'  wood  under  it  to 


400  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

make  it  long  as  tother's,  and  see  how  handy 
it  sits  up,  an'  holds  de  chaney  snug,  too." 

"  That's  the  very  thing,  for  now  I  am 
going  to  put  some  dinner  on  it  for  old  Jerry 
when  he  comes  back.  Where's  the  basket 
of  provisions,  Uncle  Simon?" 

"  Here  'tis,  miss !  but  don'  know  whar  you 
gwine  to  find  things  to  hold  all  what  in  it, 
an't  no  more  'an  three  plates — one  mug,  and 
a  broken  one — a  saucer  and  dis  pitcher,  'dout 
a  handle,  as  I  kin  see." 

Annie  looked  perplexed.  After  having 
placed  a  loaf  of  bread  on  one  plate,  a  cold 
ham  on  another,  there  was  only  one  more, 
which  must  be  reserved  for  old  Jerry  to  eat 
out  of. 

"  Oh !  my  little  table  is  all  spoiled  for  want 
of  things  to  hold  his  food.  I  wonder  what 
he  uses  every  day ;  he  must  have  a  tea-pot  ; 
here  is  a  rusty  old  kettle,  to  be  sure,  but  how 
can  I  make  him  tea  without  a  tea-pot?"  she 
said. 

"  Gruess  he  never  haves  none  hisself,  here ; 
but  he'll  enjoy  your  bottle  o'  milk,  Miss 
Annie,  may  be  more  'an  the  tea,  as  it  mought 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  401 

be  cole  when  lie  gits  it.  There  an't  any  way 
of  containing  the  heat  in  it  you  see." 

Annie  was  obliged  to  content  herself  with 
leaving  most  of  the  supplies  on  a  corner  of 
the  table  in  paper  bundles,  but  she  had  man- 
aged to  make  his  dinner  the  most  inviting- 
looking  feast  Jerry  had  sat  down  to  for  a  long 
time.  The  table  was  covered  with  a  snowy 
napkin,  and  some  bunches  of  green  laurel  in 
the  middle  set  off  every  thing  very  much. 

"  Miss  Annie,  boun  I  seed  sumpin7  as  I 
went  down  to  de  spring  would  surprise  you. 
De  ol'  gentleman  got  a  garden  down  dere, 
sure  as  you  born !"  said  Uncle  Simon  as  he 
returned  from  filling  the  pitcher  with  fresh 
water. 

"  Where  is  it  ?  I  should  like  so  much  to 
see  it,"  said  Annie,  much  interested. 

Uncle  Simon  led  the  way  down  the  hill, 
and  there,  sure  enough,  was  a  plot  of  ground 
under  a  mossy  bank  by  the  spring,  which 
was  evidently  cultivated  as  a  flower-garden. 
In  the  centre  was  a  large  sweet-briar  bush, 
around  it  some  blue  flags,  and  dotted  about 
in  different  places  a  few  other  wild  flowers ; 


4:02  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

but  in  a  corner  off  by  itself,  were  several 
rows  of  Canterbury  Bells!  At  seeing  this, 
Annie's  face  became  more  thoughtful  and 
sad. 

"  Ah !  now  I  understand  all  about  it,"  she 
said  half-aloud,  plucking  at  the-  same  time  a 
little  sprig  to  show  her  mother. 

"  That's  what  I  thought  of  directly,  my- 
self," said  Uncle  Simon. 

Mrs.  Lee  was  much  touched  at  Annie's  de- 
scription of  the  little  garden,  and  agreed  with 
her,  that  there  was  little  doubt  that  now  the 
mystery  about  their  plants  was  solved.  They 
had  waited  so  long  in  vain  for  old  Jerry's 
return  that  she  thought  it  useless  to  remain 
longer,  and  rose  to  go. 

"My  daughter,  you  have  succeeded  in 
making  wonderful  improvements  in  the  old 
man's  house,"  she  said,  as  Annie  pointed  out, 
with  great  animation,  what  Uncle  Simon  and 
herself  had  been  doing.  "  And  you  seem, 
my  dear  child,  to  be  enjoying  already  in  an- 
ticipation your  reward  for  the  pains  you 
have  been  taking  to  make  another  happy; 
but  I  am  sorry  you  can  not  see  the  pleasure 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  408 

you  will  doubtless  give.  "We  must  lay  the 
suit  of  new  clothes  on  this  chair,  and  wait  for 
another  opportunity  of  telling  him,  for  whose 
sake  we  wish  him  to  accept  and  wear  them," 
she  added  with  a  sigh. 

On  the  way  home  they  saw  old  Jerry  at  a 
distance  coming  towards  them,  apparently 
walking  with  difficulty,  but  as  soon  as  he 
caught  a  glimpse  of  the  ladies,  making  an 
effort,  he  quickened  his  pace,  and  went  off  in 
another  path  through  the  woods,  very  much 
to  their  disappointment.  That  evening  Uncle 
Simon  was  dispatched  from  Belmont  to  his 
house  on  another  errand;  this  time  he  car- 
ried the  bedstead  and  mattress,  on  which  lit- 
tle Tommy  had  once  slept,  with  some  clean 
covering.  When  he  returned,  he  reported 
that  he  found  the  old  man  walking  up  and 
down  before  his  hovel,  wringing  his  hands 
and  talking  to  himself.  Upon  seeing  the 
contents  of  the  cart,  he  would  hardly  allow 
them  to  be  carried  in,  saying : 

"  Oh !  tak'  it  a'  back,  an'  tell  the  gude 
ladie  it's  na  use  trying  to  cross  ill-luck. 
There's  nane  ever  I  luved  but  sorrow  or 


404  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

death  was  sure  to  come  upon  them.  Yet  for 
a'  that,  there's  mony,  mony  thanks  in  here 
(laying  his  hand  upon  his  breast)  to  her  can- 
nie  heart,  and  I'd  joy  ony  day  to  powre  out 
it's  reddest  bluid  for  her." 

Uncle  Simon,  however,  was  not  to  be  de- 
terred from  obeying  all  his  orders  to  the  very 
letter;  accordingly,  without  replying  to  his 
objections,  he  quietly  proceeded  to  put  up 
the  bedstead  and  spread  the  new  mattress 
with  the  clean  sheets,  etc.  He  then,  with 
the  same  quiet  gravity,  hung  up  the  little 
curtain  Annie  had  hemmed  for  the  win- 
dow, threw  into  his  cart  the  pile  of  filthy 
straw  and  rags  which  had  composed  Jerry's 
couch,  and  with  a  broad  grin  on  his  face, 
drove  off,  leaving  the  old  man  seated  on  a 
stool,  watching  him  with  a  vacant,  bewildered 
stare. 

These  comforts  seemed  to  have  arrived 
just  at  the  most  fortunate  moment,  too,  for 
that  very  night  poor  Jerry  was  seized  with  a 
violent  attack  of  inflammatory  rheumatism, 
and  when  Annie  came  again  to  see  him  a 
few  days  afterwards,  with  Mrs.  Banks,  they 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  405 

found  him  tossing  wearily  upon  his  bed, 
racked  with  pain,  and  parched  with  feverish 
thirst,  without  a  creature  to  aid  him.  When 
they  entered  he  was  raving  in  wild  delirium, 
as  if  driving  off  some  frightful  image  which 
would  force  itself  upon  his  vision ;  as  soon, 
however,  as  Annie  spoke  to  him  in  her  sweet, 
gentle  voice,  his  countenance  softened,  and 
with  a  smile,  he  began  talking  of  a  "  little 
angel  with  sunshine  around  his  head,  and 
looking  down  upon  him  with  luve  and  kind- 
ness in  his  bonnie  blue  een."  Then  he  mut- 
tered in  a  very  sad  voice,  too  low  to  be  dis- 
tinctly heard,  something  about  his  upuir  wife 
and  her  pale  face,  and  toiling  white  fingers, 
and  the  twa  bairns,  "Willie  and  Mary,  resting 
together  under  the  green  turf  in  the  auld 
kirkyard  at  Kilmarnock,  with  the  flowers 
bloomin'  aboon  their  bonnie  heads." 

His  visitors  were  deeply  moved  at  his  suf- 
fering condition,  and  did  every  thing  they 
could  to  alleviate  his  pain ;  but  in  that  for- 
lorn dwelling  it  was  hard  to  find  any  way  of 
rendering  him  more  comfortable.  Mrs.  Lee, 
therefore,  had  him  immediately  conveyed  to 


406  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

Belmont,  called  in  medical  advice,  and  with 
Mrs.  Banks' s  and  Annie's  assistance,  nursed 
him  day  and  night  most  tenderly.  For  some 
time  he  was  too  ill  to  be  conscious  of  any 
thing  that  was  done  for  him,  but  by  and  by, 
the  fever  began  to  yield  to  the  remedies  of 
the  physician,  and  he  seemed  to  be  much 
puzzled  at  finding  himself  in  a  strange  place. 
As  Mrs.  Lee  approached  him  with  a  glass  of 
cooling  drink,  and  kindly  inquired  how  he 
did,  he  covered  his  face  with  his  hands,  and 
murmured  in  a  feeble,  broken  voice  : 

"Alak!  alak!  it  sud  na  bae  that  God's 
holy  saunts  sud  came  to  wait  upon  a  puir 
sinful  carl !" 

Another  time  he  motioned  her  back,  say- 
ing: 

"  ISTa !  ladie,  it's  na  fittin'  indeed  !  it  is  na 
fittin'  me  to  tak'  it  frae  your  hand." 

Bat  when  he  found  that  resistance  was 
useless,  and  the  good  lady  persisted  in  her 
kind  care  and  attention,  in  spite  of  his  re- 
monstrances, he  at  length  quietly  submitted, 
but  his  eyes  would  follow  her  wherever  she 
moved  with  an  expression  of  mingled  rever- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  407 

ence,  gratitude,  and  devotion.  As  soon  as 
he  was  able  to  listen  and  understand  her 
words,  she  talked  to  him  of  Jesus,  (redeeming 
little  Tommy's  pledge,)  telling  him  how  free- 
ly he  had  been  ransomed  with  the  blood  of 
atonement,  and  how  easily  the  vilest  and  the 
meanest  might  be  embraced  in  the  covenant 
of  mercy.  For  some  time  he  heard  her  in 
profound  silence,  betraying  only  by  the  tears 
which  stole  down  his  furrowed  cheek  the 
emotion  he  felt.  "When  alone,  however,  he 
sometimes  muttered  to  himself  such  words  as 
these : 

"Ah!  yes;  if  her  heart  caud  melt  wi'  sae 
nrackle  luve  and  pity  for  the  sufferings  of 
this  puir  wretched  body — sae  miserable,  de- 
spised and  scorned — that  she  wad  cam'  her- 
sel',  great  and  beautiful  as  she  is,  and  cure  it 
wi'  the  touch  of  her  ain  lily  hand — I  can  na 
surely  believe  too  muckle  of  the  Gude  Mas- 
ter who  taught  her  how  to  feel  for  the 
wretched,  and  mad'  her  heart  sae  different 
frae  the  hearts  of  most  ither  folks.  But  oh ! 
she  kens  nane  of  the  woe  and  sin  that's  deep 
here  within  this  heart  o'  mine." 


408  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

His  writhing  features  would  betray  at 
other  times  the  great  struggle  which  seemed 
to  be  passing  in  his  mind,  and  he  would  de- 
spairingly exclaim : 

"]STa!  na!  it's  a7  to  na  use,  for  I'm  still 
greetin'  at  the  blessed  words,  exceptin'  ye 
forgive,  ye  can  na'  bae  forgiven." 


CHAPTER    XX. 

ALTHOUGH,  after  a  few  weeks,  the 
violence  of  pDor  Jerry's  disease  was  subdued, 
it  seemed  very  doubtful  whether  lie  would 
have  strength  to  rally  from  its  effects.  With 
sure  but  gradual  steps,  the  outcast  wanderer 
was  apparently  drawing  near  the  "  bound  of 
life  where  we  lay  our  burdens  down."  And 
the  young  people  at  Belmont,  touched  with 
pity,  now  vied  with  each  other  in  showing, 
by  acts  of  kind,  thoughtful  attention,  their 
sympathy  in  his  sufferings,  as  well  as  their 
regret  for  the  injustice  they  had  once  done  to 
his  character.  Alfred  frankly  said : 

"I  shall  always  know,  now,  that  Mrs. 
Banks  and  my  little  cousin's  way  is  the  best. 
Never  to  take  evil  for  granted  about  any 
one,  on  account  of  their  looks,  and  rather  to 
waste  kindness  on  the  unworthy,  than  run 
the  risk  of  wronging  the  innocent." 
35 


410  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

Every  day,  good,  motherly  Mrs.  Banks 
came  with,  her  prescriptions  and  her  drinks ; 
and  with  the  same  humble,  thankful  look 
with,  which  she  always  summed  up  her  own 
mercies,  she  reminded  him  of  God's  goodness, 
and  urged  him  to  be  thankful  for  the  past, 
and  trust  Him  for  the  future. 

"As  for  me,"  she  said  one  day,  "  if  the 
time  should  ever  come,  when  I  see  nothing 
but  darkness  and  sorrow  in  the  present,  I 
should  just  close  my  eyes,  and  find  enough 
to  do  in  calling  to  mind  all  the  wonderful 
love  and  mercy  of  my  past  life ;  so  it  was  that 
David  could  always  find  a  word  of  praise,  for 
the  ending  of  his  bitterest  complaints." 

Jerry  bowed  his  head,  and  answered : 

"Ay,  mistress,  as  you  say,  there's  muckle 
love,  muckle  mercy,  and  muckle  grace,  to 
think  on ;  but  then  there's  mair  an'  enough 
of  sin  and  sorrow,  for  a'  that.  I'se  try  to 
mind  me  of  the  future ;  but  nane  of  the  past 
has  light  for  me." 

Annie  loved  dearly  to  bring  her  little 
Bible  and  read  to  him  chapters,  which  she 
had  first  read  to  her  mother,  and  heard  her 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  411 

explain,  and  sing  him  her  favorite  hymns 
and  those  she  used  to  sing  to  her  little  bro- 
ther, while  the  old  man  would  express  to  her 
more  freely  than  to  any  one  else  all  his 
doubts  and  fears,  as  well  as  every  feeble 
hope  as  it  sprung  up  in  his  mind.  She  had 
kindly  gathered  for  him  the  seed  of  his  Can- 
terbury bell,  and  wept  while  he  told  her 
about  his  "  wee  winsome  Mary,"  and  how 
she  had  loved  this  flower,  because  a  kind 
ladie  gave  it  to  her ;  but  how,  when  he  had 
gone  to  the  wars  in  India,  she  died,  and  so 
when  he  came  back,  there  was  "  naething  ILL 
his  ain  loud  belonging  to  him,  but  three 
graves  in  the  auld  kirkyard;  that  he  caud 
bide  there  nae  langer,  but  when  he  hod  dug 
up  a  little  root,  to  cherish  for  their  sakes,  had 
crossed  the  wide  seas  never  to  return.  With 
his  eyes  fixed  upon  the  little  paper  seed-bag, 
suspended  from  a  nail  near  his  bed,  he  would 
beg  her  again  and  again  to  read  him  the 
loth  chapter  of  1st  Corinthians,  and  to  say 
her  "  ain  sweet  wards  afterwards."  In  her 
simple,  childlike  language,  she  would  then 
explain,  how  like  the  springing  of  the  seed 


412  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

from  the  soil  would  be  the  resurrection  of 
our  bodies,  and  talk  to  him  of  the  blessed- 
ness of  those  whom  God  has  taken  to  his  restj 
who  will  no  more  return  to  us,  but  wait  to 
welcome  us  into  their  blissful  habitation, 
though  changed  and  glorified,  still  the  same 
we  loved  on  earth,  and  may  continue  to  love 
throughout  eternity.  And  so  from  her,  poor 
Jerry  learned  to  believe  that  the  little  germ 
of  immortality  which  he  had  left  buried  in 
the  green  hillock  of  his  native  land,  would 
meet  him  again,  in  a  more  genial  clime, 
blooming  in  richer,  fairer  beauty,  yet  be  the 
same,  the  very  same  little  Mary  over  whose 
poor  dust  he  had  shed  so  many  tears. 

For  many  weeks  the  old  man  lingered, 
suffering  little  pain,  but  showing  in  his 
emaciated  frame  and  wasting  strength  that 
the  old  soldier's  last  battle  was  nigh  fought, 
and  the  City  of  Eest,  in  which  is  heard  no 
more  the  voice  of  the  oppressor,  not  far  off. 
At  last,  with  the  first  cold  winds  of  autumn 
and  the  changing  leaves,  his  final  summons 
came,  and,  in  his  turn,  the  humble,  docile 
pupil  had  now  a  lesson  to  impart — that  deep- 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  413 

ly  impressive  lesson,  which  the  dying  teach 
the  living  in  that  hour  when  the  solemn 
realities  of  life  and  death  are  unveiled  before 
us;  when  heart  and  flesh  fail,  and  we  feel 
that  none  but  the  eternal  God  can  be  the 
soul's  refuge  in  this  last  extremity.  E very- 
trace  of  anxiety  and  trouble  had  been  for 
some  time  passing  from  the  old  man's  face, 
and  an  expression  of  meek,  tranguil  joy  suc- 
ceeding, when  one  evening,  as  Mrs.  Lee,  per- 
ceiving that  he  was  much  iller  than  he  had 
been,  was  preparing  to  sit  up  by  him  herself 
during  the  night,  he  motioned  her  to  draw 
nearer,  that  he  might  make  himself  heard 
as  he  expressed  his  last  wish.  "There's 
been  great  fightin'  warks  here,  dear  ladie," 
he  murmured,  laying  his  hand  upon  his 
heart,  "  but  thonks  to  ye  a'  who  taught  me, 
and  mair  thanks  to  him  that  sent  ye.  I've 
found  the  end  o'  it  a'  at  last,  an  now  I'm  his 
whose  precious  bluid  bought  me,  an'  hae 
naething  mair  to  do  but  praise  him  for  erer- 
mair.  The  red  sodger's  claes  is  laid  by,  an' 
I  think  nae  langer  of  ony  wrongs,  but  I  crave 
to  bear  my  Master's  name  and  mark  upon 
35* 


414  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

me,  before  I  go  to  meet  his  blessed  face. 
Only  I  wad  na  ask  too  muckle"  he  added  dif- 
fidently. Mrs.  Lee  immediately  promised 
to  gratify  his  wish  if  possible,  and  the  next 
morning  sent  for  a  clergyman  who  chanced 
to  be  visiting  a  friend  in  the  neighborhood. 
He  came  at  quite  an  early  hour,  and  all  the 
family  were  assembled  in  the  room  of  the 
dying  man.  The  pallor  of  death  was  on  his 
face,  but  it  was  radiant  with  joy,  as  the  minis- 
ter of  Jesus,  marking  on  his  brow  his  sacred 
symbol,  pronounced  the  words  which  fell 
gratefully  upon  his  dying  ear:  "  We  receive 
this  person  into  the  congregation  of  Christ's 
/lock,  and  do  sign  him  with  the  sign  of  the 
cross."  When  he  had  received,  together  with 
the  little  band  of  Christian  friends  around 
him,  the  memorials  of  a  Saviour's  dying  love, 
and  the  sweet  assurance  was  read,  "Yerily, 
verily,  I  say  unto  you,  he  that  heareth  my 
word,  and  believeth  on  him  that  sent  me, 
hath  everlasting  life,"  "My  Saviour's  am 
sweet,  blessed  words,"  he  faintly  articulated 
with  a  smile,  adding,  "  and  I  forgive  as  free- 
ly as  I  hae  ben  forgiven."  Then  with  a  part- 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  415 

ing  look  to  his  kind  friends,  full  of  grateful 
love,  he  rested  upon  "the  Everlasting  arm" 
which  bore  him  safely  over  the  dark  river, 
and  opened  to  him  the  gates  of  that  "  Beauti- 
ful City,"  where,  with  inaudible  footfalls, 
walk  the  followers  of  Him  who  was  meek  and 
lowly  in  heart,  and  where  still  stand,  as  of 
old,  "the  great  multitude  which  no  man 
could  number,  of  all  nations,  and  kindreds, 
and  people,  and  tongues,  before  the  throno 
and  before  the  Lamb,  clothed  in  white  robes, 
and  palms  in  their  hands,  and  worship  God, 
saying:  Blessing  and  glory,  and  wisdom, 
and  thanksgiving,  and  honor  and  power  and 
might  be  unto  our  Grod,  forever  arid  ever. 
Amen." 


CHAPTER    XXI. 

THE  spring  and  summer  have  each  succes- 
sively come  and  gone  since  our  readers  were 
first  introduced  to  the  family  at  Belmont, 
and  now  the  bright  tints  of  autumn  are  begin- 
ning to  fade  before  the  more  stern  and  som- 
bre face  of  winter.  But  during  these  event- 
ful months  the  little  Ludwells  had  witnessed 
sadder  changes  than  those  of  the  varying  sea- 
sons. Their  first  tears  had  been  shed  for  a 
more  serious  cause  than  that  of  some  passing 
disappointment  or  trivial  wound;  for  the 
first  time  death  had  presented  itself  to  them 
as  a  reality,  and  the  sad  moral,  "  In  the 
midst  of  life  we  are  in  death,"  had  hushed  for 
a  while,  with  its  startling  sound,  their  merry 
games  and  happy  plays.  Childhood's  sor- 
rows, however,  from  whatever  cause,  are  pro- 
verbially short,  and  the  elastic  spring  of 
youth  had  rebounded  before  this  to  its  old 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  417 

place,  so  that  the  laugh  and  jest  and  merry 
song  echoed  through  the  house  as  loudly 
as  ever.  Occasionally,  indeed,  a  thoughtful 
shade  would  cross  some  young  face,  as  im- 
pelled by  a  suddenly  awakened  recollection, 
it  sought  once  more  to  unravel  the  great  mys- 
tery it  had  witnessed — the  parting  of  soul  and 
lody. 

Upon  the  evening,  however,  when  we  in- 
vite you  to  step  with  us,  for  the  last  time, 
into  the  comfortable  dining-room,  every  sha- 
dow seems  to  have  been  banished,  and  an  un- 
mingled  glow  of  happy  anticipation  is  visible 
in  their  countenances.  The  bright  hickory 
fire  is  throwing  warm,  cheering,  inviting- 
looking  beams  upon  the  furniture,  arranged 
with  scrupulous  and  unusual  regard  to  order 
and  taste.  There  can  scarcely  be  a  mistake 
in  the  inference  drawn  from  these  circum- 
stances regarding  the  event  which  is  so  joy- 
fully expected.  Yes,  if  you  could  interpret 
the  language  of  those  little  throbbing  hearts, 
you  might  hear  them  say,  with  each  succes- 
give  beat : 

"I  am  so  happy,   because  mamma  •  and 


418  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

papa  are  coming,  certainly  coming.     Coming, 
coming,  coming!" 

Henry  and  George  are  at  the  farthest  gate 
of  the  plantation,  using  both  eyes  and  ears  to 
catch  the  first  indication  of  the  travellers 
being  at  hand  ;  when  they  have  promised  to 
hurrah  so  loud  that  the  party  within  doors 
shall  hear  them  immediately — they  having  at 
length,  with  difficulty  found  occupations  suffi- 
ciently absorbing  to  quiet  for  a  while  their 
impatient  restlessness.  The  Forrests  have  re- 
turned home ;  but  Mrs.  Banks  seems  so  firmly 
established  amongst  them,  that  no  one  thinks 
of  her  ever  going  away.  She  sits  now  in  a 
corner  of  the  hearth,  holding  Phebe  on  her 
knee,  and  singing  to  her  a  favorite  melody 
from  Mother  Goose,  about  the  man  that 
jumped  into  the  bramble-bush,  and  scratched 
out  both  his  eyes ;  while  the  child,  with  Mina, 
her  pet  tortoise-shell  kitten,  in  her  lap,  laughs 
aloud,  and  threatens  to  use  poor  pussy's  own 
paws  to  dispossess  her  of  a  pair  of  sharp, 
cunning  little  green  eyes,  which  peer  know- 
ingly and  stealthily  about.  In  the  middle  of 
the  •  rug,  Charlie  has  seated  himself,  with  a 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  419 

lijtle  basket  of  hickory-nuts,  off  which  he 
is  stripping  the  outer  bark  with  both  teeth 
and  fingers,  giving,  now  and  then,  amused 
attention  to  Mrs.  Banks  and  her  merry 
rhymes.  Not  far  from  the  fire  sits  Mrs.  Lee 
at  a  little  stand,  on  which  there  is  a  glass  of 
delicate  flowers,  which  she  is  copying  with 
her  water-colors  into  Susy's  sketch-book. 
Her  hand  moves  along  with  graceful  rapidity, 
leaving  a  beautiful  imitation  of  each  little 
flower  traced  on  the  blue  or  rose-colored  leaf, 
Susy  standing  all  the  while  close  to  her 
elbow,  watching  the  progress  of  her  work 
with  intense  admiration  and  delight.  The 
rest  are  all  gathered  around  grandpa,  who 
sits  near  the  window,  with  a  little  round 
table  before  him,  on  which  he  has  placed  his 
microscope,  and  some  curious  leaves  and  in- 
sects they  are  examining  with  it.  The  old 
gentleman  looks  down  with  benevolent  plea- 
sure upon  his  grandchildren,  very  much 
gratified  at  the  interest  they  manifest  in  his 
explanations  and  remarks,  and  they  enjoy 
quite  as  much  as  ever  his  genial  society.  He 
has  been  absent  from  Belmont  an  unusually 


420  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

long  time,  for  which  they  have  just  been  call- 
ing him  to  account,  and  while  doing  this  in 
most  frolicsome  spirit,  scarcely  one  of  them 
fails  to  notice  in  his  manner  more  of  softness 
than  it  was  wont  to  have,  as  well  as  a  certain 
degree  of  gentle  gravity,  blended  with  the 
former  kind,  cheerful  tone  of  his  conversa- 
tion, and  more  than  once  several  pairs  of  eyes 
have  been  wonderingly  fastened  upon  him, 
when,  during  the  course  of  their  microscopi- 
cal observations,  he  has  paused  to  point  out 
with  reverent  and  earnest  eloquence,  the  wis- 
dom and  goodness  of  the  great  Creator. 

These  several  pleasant  little  groups  are 
broken  up  by  the  sound  of  the  signal-shout, 
which  presently  rings  through  the  air,  echoed 
again  and  again  from  different  parts  of  the 
plantation.  Instantly  the  room  was  deserted 
by  the  delighted  children,  who  rushed  eagerly 
down  the  long  avenue,  to  meet  the  carriage, 
giving  loud  expression  to  their  feelings  all 
the  way.  Annie  and  her  mother  alone  lin- 
gered together  by  one  of  the  large  pillars  of 
the  portico.  They  were  both  very  pale  and 
trembled  very  much  as  the  moment  of  meet- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  421 

ing  drew  near.  Ah !  could  they  keep  back 
that  rush  of  feeling  as  they  thought  of  all 
that  had  happened  during  those  months  of 
separation?  Yet  not  for  the  world  would 
they  have  cast  one  shadow  on  the  joyous  mo- 
ment of  reunion ;  and  bravely  they  struggled 
to  gain  the  mastery  over  themselves,  and, 
thinking  only  of  others,  to  fulfill  the  Scrip- 
ture precept:  "Kejoice  with  those  that  do 
rejoice."  As  soon  as  Mr.  Ludwell  saw  the 
children,  he  ordered  Thomas  to  stop,  and 
jumping  out,  ran  to  meet  them.  One  after 
another  was  folded  in  his  warm,  tender,  fa- 
therly embrace  ;  then  followed  a  rush  to  the 
door  and  steps  of  the  carriage,  to  kiss  dear 
mamma,  whose  glowing  cheeks  and  animated 
countenance  spoke  very  favorably  for  the 
effects  of  her  journey.  Clara,  and  as  many 
more  as  could  be  squeezed  into  the  carriage, 
rode  with  her  up  to  the  door,  while  Mr.  Lud- 
well and  the  three  eldest  boys  walked  on 
rapidly  together.  Grandpa  was  standing  at 
the  end  of  the  gravel- walk,  ready  to  welcome 
back  the  wanderers. 

"Why,  Emmy!"   he  exclaimed,  looking 
36 


422  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

with  satisfaction  at  his  daughter's  improved 
appearance,  after  the  first  warm  greetings 
were  exchanged,  "you  look  like  yourself 
again,  sure  enough.  It  is  amazing!  a  re- 
storation far  more  complete  than  I  had  dared 
to  hope  for.  May  we  be  as  thankful  as  we 
should  be.  And  as  for  you,  Edward,"  he 
added,  turning  to  Mr.  Ludwell,  and  shaking 
his  hand  warmly,  "  you  look  as  if  a  winter's 
hard  work  were  absolutely  needed  to  reduce 
you  to  reasonable  dimensions." 

"  I  have  a  first-rate  chance  then  in  pros- 
pect," answered  Mr.  Ludwell,  laughing,  "for 
my  business  has  accumulated  during  my  long 
holiday  to  an  almost  frightful  amount.  Ah  1 
here  is  good  Mrs.  Banks.  I'm  delighted  to 
see  your  kind  face  once  more ;  the  appearance 
of  the  children  speaks  volumes  in  praise  of 
your  good  care  of  them.  I  never  saw  little 
Phebe  so  robust  before ;  but  Mother  Banks 
always  had  a  way  of  working  miracles  upon 
young  folks,"  he  continued,  stooping  to  kiss, 
with  a  son's  dutiful  affection,  the  old  nurse 
who  had  acted  almost  a  mother's  part  succes- 
sively to  himself  and  his  little  ones. 


THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS.  423 

With  a  deep  sigh,  he  glanced  now  towards 
his  sister,  whom  he  hastened  to  meet,  and 
nothing  could  have  been  more  touching  than 
the  tender  sympathy  of  both  Mr.  and  Mrs 
Ludwell  to  Annie  and  herself.  It  was  some 
time  before  they  were  sufficiently  composed, 
after  this  interview,  to  receive  the  congratu- 
lations and  welcomes  which  still  awaited 
them  from  the  servants,  who  were  crowded 
in  the  wide  hall,  waiting  to  speak  to  them, 
testifying  with  their  own  tongues  how  glad 
it  made  them  to  have  master  and  mistus 
back. 

Even  old  Aunt  Mindy  had  hobbled  up 
from  her  cabin,  and  stood  leaning  on  her  tall 
staff,  while  Uncle  Lemuel  had  donned  again 
his  shorts  and  tights,  and  filled  his  mouth 
with  many  long-winded  compliments,  clothed 
in  the  most  pedantic  language  he  could  mus- 
ter, from  his  limited  acquaintance  with  the 
world  of  letters.  An  early  and  sumptuous 
supper  came  after  a  while,  to  tempt  the  appe- 
tites of  the  travellers  after  their  long  ride. 

"  Mother,  won't  you  sit  at  the  head  your- 
self, now  that  you  are  well  ?"  asked  Henry, 


424:  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

upon  seeing  Clara  take  that  place  as  she  had 
before  been  accustomed  to  do. 

"  Yes,  my  son ;  I  hope  I  have  come  back 
strong  enough  for  all  my  duties.  But  sister 
Clara  thinks  she  will  spare  me  all  fatigue  on 
this  first  night ;  so  you  see  she  is  making  a 
visitor  of  me,"  his  mother  answered  cheer- 
fully. 

"  Edward,  may  I  ask  a  blessing  ?"  General 
Lee  asked,  as  the  family  were  about  to  be 


Mr.  Ludwell  started  with  surprise  at  this 
unusual  suggestion,  but  instantly  checking 
himself,  answered  with  grave  respect :  "  Cer- 
tainly, sir."  At  the  same  time  he  motioned 
to  such  of  the  children  as  had  already  seated 
themselves  to  rise  again,  and  the  old  gentle- 
man, standing  in  the  midst  of  his  descendants, 
with  his  venerable  head  bowed,  and  his  hands 
lifted  to  invoke  a  blessing  upon  them,  looked 
like  one  of  the  patriarchs  of  old.  To  the 
looks  of  inquiry  and  astonishment  which  his 
grandchildren  were  casting  upon  him,  he  re- 
turned a  frank,  kind  smile  as  he  said : 

"  Better  late  than  never,  my  dears.    Don't 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  425 

you  think  so  ?  Grandpa,  you  see,  lias  at  last 
found  a  safe  harbor  for  his  poor  shattered 
bark,  so  long  tossed  upon  an  angry  sea.  He 
has  tried  for  many  years  living  without  God 
in  the  world,  but  found  that  it  contained  no- 
thing which  could  satisfy  the  cravings  of  aa 
immortal  creature,  and  so  in  the  eleventh 
hour  he  resolved  to  go  right  to  the  Lord 
Jesus,  and  offer  to  become  a  laborer  in  his 
vineyard;  and  strange  as  it  may  seem,  his 
poor  unworthy  services  have  been  accepted, 
lie  has  been  welcomed,  indeed,  not  as  a  ser- 
vant, but  as  an  adopted  child  into  the  house- 
hold of  God,  and  is  ever  ready  to  exclaim : 
'Because  thy  loving  kindness  is  better 
than  life,  my  lips  shall  praise  thee !'  Now 
when  he  tells  you  what  great  joy  he  finds, 
himself,  in  this  new  relation  to  our  heavenly 
Father,  will  you  wonder  that  he  desires  more 
than  any  thing  in  the  world  to  see  those 
whom  he  loves  best  made  equally  happy  ? 
Take  warning,  my  dear  little  ones,  by  these 
gray  hairs,  and  don't  do  as  I  have  done — 
leave  only  the  last  hour  of  life  to  be  spent  in 
the  enjoyment  of  real  solid  peace  and  comfort. 
83* 


4:26  THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

How  I  wish  some  one  of  you,  at  least,  would 
this  very  night  come  and  lay  your  hand  in 
mine  as  a  token  of  your  determination  to  take 
at  once  a  stand  for  God  in  the  world,  and  be- 
come an  '  heir  of  the  grace  of  life.'  " 

Mrs.  Ludwell  rose  as  he  finished  speaking, 
and  gliding  softly  to  her  father's  side,  laid 
her  hand  in  his,  saying : 

"  Keceive  mine  as  the  first  pledge,  dear 
father,  for  you  have  brought  my  halting, 
doubting  mind  at  length  to  a  conclusion ;  and 
I  can  say  to-night,  that  I  am  resolved  that,  by 
(rod's  grace,  I  will  be  henceforth  wholly  de- 
voted to  his  service  and  live  for  his  glory." 

It  would  be  in  vain  to  attempt  a  descrip- 
tion of  the  effect  which  this  scene  produced ; 
enough  that  it  was  one  which  the  youngest 
child  present  could  never  forget.  "When  the 
evening  which  was  spent  in  tranquil  happi- 
ness had  drawn  to  a  close,  and  they  were 
about  to  separate  for  the  night,  the  old  fam- 
ily Bible,  so  long  unused,  was  brought  out 
once  more,  and  placed  before  General  Lee, 
who  opened  it  with  a  trembling  hand,  and 
read  the  first  twelve  verses  of  the  32d  chap- 


THE   CANTERBURY  BELLS.  427 

ter  of  Deuteronomy,  pausing  with,  deep  emo- 
tion on  the  fourth  verse.  "  He  is  a  rock  ;  his 
work  is  perfect :  for  all  his  ways  are  judg- 
ment ;  a  God  of  truth  and  without  iniquity, 
just  and  right  is  he."  He  then  offered  a 
short,  simple,  childlike  prayer,  fervently  com- 
mitting the  whole  household  to  the  care  of 
the  Good  Shepherd  of  Israel ;  and  so  was  the 
family  altar  of  Belmont  again  set  up  this  first 
evening  of  their  meeting  together  again,  after 
a  separation  which  had  been  most  strikingly 
marked  by  the  interposition  of  God's  hand, 
plainly  showing  that  he  indeed  hath  power  to 
"kill  and  to  make  alive,  to  wounl  and  to 
TuaL" 

"  My  dear  Annie,"  said  General  Lee,  in  a 
low  voice  to  his  daughter-in-law,  as  he  bade 
her  good-night,  "  I  have  not  thanked  you  yet 
for  your  instrumentality  in  my  present  hap- 
piness. Your  prayers  and  your  faith  have 
not  been  in  vain,  you  see ;  and  neither,  let 
me  add,  has  your  example  failed  to  impart 
its  lesson.  God  bless  you,  my  child !" 

A  thanksgiving  was  offered  up  that  night 
by  Mrs.  Lee,  in  her  closet,  such  as  only  they 


428  THE  CANTERBURY  BELLS. 

can  offer  who  have  long  watched,  waited, 
and  prayed  for  the  conversion  of  a  beloved 
friend,  when  at  last  the  clouds  of  error  and 
prejudice  are  dispelled,  and  the  clear  beams 
of  the  sun  of  righteousness  begin  to  cast  their 
heavenly  radiance  around  his  pathway.  And 
good  Mrs.  Banks  lay  down  to  rest,  full  of 
thankful  hope,  as  she  looked  forward  to  the 
fulfillment  of  her  best  wishes  and  most  earn- 
est prayers  for  the  dear  Belmont  Family. 


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